Company: Prospect Park Release: 2011 Genre: Metalcore Reviewer: EC
Same harsh reality through the same calculated formula
One has to scratch their head by record number three. This is the same Five Finger Death Punch, the same mechanized warfare through solid refinement and precision. Ultimately this is the same harsh reality through the same calculated formula. So what is the issue with "American Capitalist"? --The muffled production job by Kevin Churko (Ozzy, Shania Twain). This thing just reeks of terrible production values, from the guitar riffs that lack any treble or highs to the kick drum that is almost transparent in this thick wall of sound. The band shoot high, pulverizing in intensity and bravado with their wicked brand of hardcore gone commercial. The ballads here (count 'em 4) are all putrid Daughtry-styled radio play but the meat and potatoes has always been within the anger and mosh madness presented by a band doing it better than most. Title track, "100 Ways To Hate" and "Under And Over It" are delicious entries in the "American Gospel" of today's metalcore hybrid with plenty of melody and focus on sing-along chorus bits. In much the same way that Soilwork plods the course of abrasive melody this band have shown that same course of action through three records and have the sales to showcase that the shoe fits domestically. Churko is still a downer.
