SOILWORK
I would like to call this newest offering by Swedish giants SOILWORK 'the long awaited follow up' to the superb A Predator's Portrait. Truth is however, it didn't take long for this talented bunch to bounce right back and deliver their fans another blow. I think the appropriate term here is the 'highly anticipated follow up' and indeed I know I speak for more than just myself when I stress 'anticipated'. Next to ARCH ENEMY and the still absent new IN FLAMES album, you'd be hard pressed to find a more eagerly awaited release this year or the last. With that, lets break it down.Natural Born Chaos, as you might rightly expect, is the typical successor to its ancestor. Truthfully, you could even swap a few tracks off either of those releases and newcomers would never know the difference. What really separates these two releases is the noted move toward a more accessible audience. The manifestion isn't too dramatic and certainly not approaching anything overly commericalized but long time listeners won't be able to shake the feeling that this may in fact be the last time SOILWORK resemble the SOILWORK they knew from the late 1990's. Does this translate into an album lacking in form or content? Well no! I mean, duh, the rating is clearly a good one and I would have been deep into a diatribe by now had it been so.
This album's effect on me was typical. First listen yielded a decent opinion but nothing I was twirling in joy over. Second listen revealed those subtle hooks sinking in deeper. By the time I spun this baby about 5 times however, I was ensnared. Yes, it grows on you just like a lot of albums do. SOILWORK may in fact be the most accomplished band in Sweden or all of Scandinavia for that matter, at creating masterful and memorable chorus lines. They proved it on A Predator's Portrait and they merely confirm that it wasn't a flash in the pan on Natural Born Chaos. These guys just know how to structure songs brilliantly and devise choruses that demand you sing along. The prior album hooked me quicker but I cannot deny how deeply into this album I am at this point.
The sonic similiarity between this outing and the last is obvious and where the evolution is most notable is in the more effective usage of keyboards and the strikingly consistent usage of clean vocals, which are expectedly very prominent. They're value to the whole package cannot be understated either. Some might frown on it but again, its hard to negate the impact it has on the nagging catchiness of each and every song. SOILWORK haven't had to surrender much in the way of aggressiveness either, to achieve this end. By and large, Natural Born Chaos is just about as spastic and energetic as was it's predeccessor, its just a little more user friendly around the edges. Production standards are essentially equal with A Predator's Portrait as well, with this newest romp being a bit clearer and concise in the mix.
This album is full of spit and polish melodic Aggro-Thrash (too call this Melodic Death Metal is completely inappropriate at this point). SOILWORK have really penned themselves into the Swedish Metal history books with this release and as much as I feared they'd submit to more standard trends, I have to admit that this next stage of their metamorphisis is completely logical and awfully enjoyable. My gripes are limited, almost non-existent in fact. I confess I am a bit let down by the absence of more lead guitar duels. Given how good both guitarists are I expected more showing off this time around. It never materializes. Still, this ends up being just as good as anything they've ever done, in a slilghtly different capacity. You can actually play this in public places without drawing too much negative attention. Not that this is soft or suple - it ain't. Its just...well...fucking cool, alright!?!? You didn't really expect SOIWORK to screw up did you?
John's rating: 7
Matt's rating: 8
