(Candlelight/Stomp)

Old soul in a new machine

Okay, aside from one controversial Gary Numan cover, Los Angeles cyber-metal outfit Fear Factory spent most of the ‘90s at the forefront of the global heavy metal scene. In fact, when extreme metal had its brief dalliance with the mainstream, Fear Factory represented a working example of a band whose commercial success had not affected their unflinching creative integrity. But that was then … and these days the Fear Factory name isn’t worth shit. Courtroom squabbles, membership changes and a succession of woefully sub-par records (2004’s Archetype and 2005’s Transgression) have seen Fear Factory largely disappear from the mainstream and become a laughing stock in the underground. Mechanize, the band’s seventh album and first to feature their re-jigged rhythm section, takes giant steps towards repairing the band’s battered legacy. The core of the band’s sound has always been Dino Cazares’ mind-blowing, staccato riffing, and how these have been prioritised in the mix of Mechanize makes them even more powerful. On the title track and Fear Campaign in particular, Dino’s riffs are blistering, mindfuck jams. Gene “The Atomic Clock” Hoglan’s contribution to Mechanize is another massive boost for Fear Factory. His triggered double-kicks burn alongside Dino’s weird rhythms, making tracks like Industrial Campaign and Powershifter sound like dance music for MechWarriors. Ending on a trifecta of Godflesh-influenced slower tracks, Mechanize is a perfectly formed killing machine. Bleak, unapologetic and superbly crafted, Mechanize is an apt reintroduction to Fear Factory. Now, if only someone could do something about Strapping Young Lad.

****

TOM HERSEY

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