(Short) Album Reviews

Cynic - Traced In Air (2008)

Words can't describe how glad I am that this band has returned. I've ruined three copies of their 1993 masterpiece, Focus, because I've listened to it so much (a problem finally solved by MP3). Traced In Air stands up to Focus pretty solidly. The band sounds more laid back and melodic than the death metal influences they previously had, which makes perfect sense. These guys are 15 years older than they were when we last heard from them. This was certainly my top album of 2008. 5 out of 5

 

Deadlock - Manifesto (2008)

This album is complete and utter crap. I don't know much about the history of this band, but it sounds like a group of metal outsiders started a metal band, attempting to blend the most generic melodic death metal riffs (think of an even more watered-down In Flames) with non-metal elements that have already been proven to be incompatible (techno, rap). Don't even bother giving this a listen and just take my word for it on this one. 0 out of 5

 

Last updated: March 11, 2009