TEN YEAR ANNIVERSARY REPOST!
Celebrating our 10th anniversary docweasel.com is posting some of our most popular articles from 10 years ago this month
Soilwork/Natural Born Chaos
Vile
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When I was listening to this album, a friend walked in and said, “What are you listening to on the radio?” …my friend is either an idiot or that this is a more mainstream Soilwork.
Soilwork/Natural Born Chaos
Nuclearblast Records
Just one year after releasing ‘A Predator’s Portrait’, Soilwork are back with ‘Natural Born Chaos’ and Devin Townsend is producing this puppy. Soilwork are focusing on melody with this album, and they succeed very well. But when listening to it, I was wondering if I could even finish this album before I popped in some Skinless. We’ve got lots of clean vocals and up front keyboards, which isn’t really my cup of tea…
With a short intro, “Follow The Hollow” starts off the album in a blast. This one song represents the entire album; lots of melody, clean-to-scream vocals, scarce hints at brutality, and is one of the best songs here. Great guitar and drumming with killer production courtesy of Townsend. Guitar work is good with no complaints as is the drumming from Henry Ranta. One thing that bothers me are the keyboards, which at some points stand out way too much.
Songs like “As We Speak” and “Song Of The Damned” shouldn’t have had those blaring keyboards. The keyboards do succeed once in awhile, as on “The Bringer” which is a kickass song. But the over-use of clean vocals from “Speed” is very obvious and ruins most of their songs, such as “The Flameout” and “Mercury Shadow”. “The Flameout” could have kicked major ass, but the clean chorus is very bad, and most songs are diluted from overuse. Maybe if Speed had used more death vocals it could have fucking rocked. On “Black Star Receiver” Speed even has a duet with producer Devin, but it adds too much to the song and detracts from the otherwise good songwork.
When I was listening to this album, a friend walked in and said, “What are you listening to on the radio?” What should this mean? That my friend is either an idiot or that this is a more mainstream Soilwork?
While being mainstream isn’t bad, overusing several pieces with a possible mainstream attempt is. They used the clean vocals in every single song for some reason, and I don’t think it was for the melody. You can be melodic with any type of singing. If I seem like I’m just ranting about the vocals and boards, it’s because they are generally the only two faults with the album. Sure, some songs do work with those damned clean vocals and keyboards, but its just not my style.
If you like or can overlook this, then pick it up. I would suggest this album if you’re just getting into Soilwork, then ‘Chainheart Machine’. If you like your metal with shitloads of melody and hate those death vocals, then I really suggest you get this album.
As for me, as soon as I finished ‘Natural Born Chaos’ I did pop in that Skinless album, which is definatly more to my taste.
Vile Currently Annoying Neighbors With : Origin – ‘I,I,I’ looped over and over and over…