Swedish metal needs a shot in the arm. Don’t get me wrong, the Swedes can fucking play. It’s just that the generic formula that about 85 percent of the metal bands from that country got tired about three years after At the Gates released Slaughter of the Soul. Ever since then, it’s been the same riffs, the same vocals, the same production, the same rhythms. All good, but all the same.
The Black Dalia Murder is that shot in the arm. The only problem is, the band is from Michigan. Oh, well.
This band isn’t the first to have taken all the good stuff from the Swedish school and thrown in more American flavors. And they won’t be the last. But they do it really well. Blistering drums and dual vox (with the screamy high one being the predominant voice) are delivered as well as the slick guitars and whammy solos. If only the songs didn’t all sound the same, you’d have one of the best records of the year. Still, too shabby it is not. (7/10)
All related articles (interviews, live, from the vault)
