Reassembly (Archetype - Fear Factory)

Member Name: Frankingsteins

Product:	Archetype - Fear Factory
Date:	25/05/04 (59 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A strong and reasonably varied album, Great performances all round, Fear Factory are back

Disadvantages: Repetitive at times, Not as intriguing as their cyberpunk-oriented past releases

In 2004, ?Archetype? was released by long-established industrial metal band Fear Factory. Their heaviest album in many years, Archetype incorporates all of the band?s previous efforts and expands upon them, producing one of the strongest metal albums of recent years. The album was hotly anticipated and well received by the band?s fans who were under the impression, until only a few months previously, that Fear Factory were no more.


REMANUFAC& #84;URE


A year after the release of ?Digimortal,? disagreements between band members led to Fear Factory disbanding, and the subsequent release of two unnecessary albums serving only to complete the band?s contract with Roadrunner records; ?Concrete? was a re-release of their unimpressive demo album and ?Hatefiles? was a collection of B-sides.

The circumstances surrounding the band?s split were obviously not as extreme as some believed, considering the existence of this new album, but it seems that the main differences of opinion lay with former guitarist Dino Cazares. The only band member not to return, Dino?s heavy style and more mellow rhythms meant that a replacement guitarist would be difficult to find; therefore the band took the surprising turn of reallocating the talents of bass player Christian Olde Wolbers. Christian also played the basslines for all the tracks, but the band?s live bass duties are handled by Byron Stroud of ?Strapping Young Lad.?


COMPONENT& #83;


Burton C. Bell (vocals, keyboards)
Christian Olde Wolbers (guitar, bass guitar)
Raymond Herrera (drums)


SOUL OF THE NEW MACHINE


Fear F
actory have long been the kings of cyberpunk, man versus machine concept albums, themes that fit the music surprisingly well. With this much more personal album, Burton shouts and sings about problems with the music industry and modern life, ditching William Gibson and Philip K. Dick in favour of

The sound is still mechanically perfect, but the production on this album is excellent in that it balances out the raw power of the guitar riffs and the polished keyboard samples; musical taste aside, this album sounds perfect, and Burton?s singing voice improves with every release, although it?s not quite as haunting as on some of the earlier albums.


TRACKS


1. SLAVE LABOUR

Kicking straight in with the heavy, drum-led riffs and atmospheric effects, this is a great opener to the album that indicates how it means to go on. Burton?s vocals range from aggressive but audible roars over the bass riffs and mid-range singing in the chorus sections, even distorting to a static crackling voice at parts. Reading the lyrics, it?s obvious that the band are heavily criticising record companies and contracts; this isn?t a groundbreaking song but is a great opening track that doesn?t drag on.

?My chains are paper thin, and they're welded with ink
Sealed inside a legal trap, so tight blood don't leave?

2. CYBERWASTE

The first track to be released as a promotional single, this very heavy and angry track is dominated by Herrera?s drums but has some great heavy guitars and a memorable chorus. Although at first it could easily be misinterpreted as a return to the sci-fi angle, the song condemns internet abuse of the band and their contemporaries, and there is a great change in the song towards the end including ominous vocals. 
0;ast, raw and aggressive metal.

?Sow your seeds of ignorance you cyberparasite
Seems you say most anything to stab me with your lies
You are a virus spreading disease!?

3. ACT OF GOD

This song begins with a staccato build-up in the style of some of the band?s past songs before the main riff can be determined. Similar in style to the band?s debut album but much more refined, there is excellent use of strange samples and pauses, and the slightly longer length of five minutes offers more in the way of breaks and tempo changes than some of the shorter tracks; this does sound a little too similar to tracks from early albums however.

?Lights of faith blinding my eyes
Fires of hate scorch through the skies?

4. DRONES

This song has a great, catchy riff and some more impressive use of synthesisers to add a great atmosphere, and as such is one of the better tracks on the album. Burton?s vocals have an echo effect and the chorus section has the best use of vocals and guitar harmonies this far in the album. Because it is only really a criticism of material wealth and the inevitability of death it somehow feels less aggressive than some of the other tracks and I would describe it as almost upbeat in places, especially the very melodic singing at the end: great!

?In paradise there's ill neglect
And lives are lost in full distress
The weight of sin is memory spent?

5. ARCHETYPE

The title tracks of Fear Factory?s albums are something of a mixed bag: ?Demanufacture? was one of their heaviest offerings, but ?Obsolete? and ?Digimortal? failed to distinguish themselves amongst the other tracks on their albums. Thankfully, ?Archetype? is an incredible track and one of my favourite Fear &#
70;actory songs. Essentially the structure is pretty much the same as the rest, but this gets the balance of heaviness, aggression and contemplative mellowness perfectly. The opening riff is melodic and memorable, but this belies the later ?F*** you!? onslaught. It?s clear why this is the title track, with its message of staying true to one?s beliefs and relating this to the band?s own decisions: the chorus states that ?the infection has been removed, the soul of this machine has improved,? a clear reference to the band?s newfound optimism as a unit.

?You must never forget
The essence of your spark
All of that which defines you
Is the essence of your blood?

6. CORPORATE CLONING

The mechanical, repetitive opening riff suits the subject matter very well, but doesn?t allow preparation for Burton?s unusual vocal style that sounds a little off-putting. The vocals improve, and the riff is memorable and often very heavy, although the lyrics criticising short-lived celebrities and pop icons are a little unnecessary and tired by now. Still, it?s very headbangable and is by no means a filler track, not being particularly long.

?Like insects share a mind, deviance is a crime
Deliquent rank and file, encoded, stamped and styled?

7. BITE THE HAND THAT BLEEDS

The quiet opening of this song sounds very similar to Nine Inch Nails, before the distinctive Fear Factory guitars kick in. Less bass drum-led, this is a slower offering that features much more of Burton?s singing and great use of orchestral guitars in the style of the classic FF track ?Resurrection.? A welcome change of pace, the vocals reflect over misplaced trust in an unnamed individual; whether
this is related to the band?s break-up or personal life is unclear. A very good track that stands apart from the rest and is easy single material.

?I see you have two faces turning
Changing face to keep me guessing
You have mastered the art of deceiving?

8. UNDERCURRE NT

Starting similarly to ?Archetype,? this is an angry and somewhat unpredictable track, bringing in singing and bass grooves at different junctures, and there is good use of ensemble shouting in the chorus. The problem with this song is that, as the eighth track, it sounds like a repeat of some of the earlier material despite being equally as impressive and valid, experimenting with less heavy drums and more extensive use of the bass.

?Face me and you still deny
Hate me and drown me in lies?

9. DEFAULT JUDGEMENT

A solo bass riff introduces and permeates this very heavy track, which is aided by some of the most melodic and atmospheric keyboards on the album. The issue remains that by this point in the album, more casual listeners may have become bored of the repetitive style but it is another very good track, if lacking in originality. Great performances all round in this one, and it criticises peoples? prejudices on the whole which is good I suppose.

?Spiteful resolutions, By your sentence we must fall
Spiteful resolution, Bitter thoughts destroy us all?

10. BONESCRAPE R

For some reason, Bonescraper fails to impress me in the way that the other tracks do, possibly because it sounds like a re-hashing of their heaviest tracks and doesn?t really distinguish itself. Also a little aggressive at the cost of musical variety.

?There is no future for us to s
uture
Your life ill fated, beat down and hated?

11. HUMAN SHIELDS

This track is a very, very welcome change with its soft electric guitars and unintrusive drum beat at the start, and even when everything becomes louder it retains the melancholy quality. Burton also carries out his best vocals for quite a few tracks and this is one of my favourite tracks on the album for these reasons. It is also less likely to give the listener a headache than the others, without deviating into something too different to be considered ?true Fear Factory?; several of their tracks have made this mistake in the past and become unlistenable.

?Mothers bare the burdens of our defeats
Fathers are on their knees praying for mercy?

12. ASCENSION

The closing track escapes the curse of sameness by being an incredibly atmospheric, if a little dull, instrumental; the term instrumental should be used loosely as none of the regular instruments play a part, the track being composed by keyboards and samples. This is an impressive track however, and is one of the band?s most atmospherically intriguing offerings in their history, perfectly suited to their cyberpunk lyrics of bygone days.

And not forgetting, SCHOOL

The twelve tracks have finished, and on comes this completely different number, a cover of ?School,? a song from the first album released by grunge legends Nirvana to celebrate (sorry, I mean commemorate) the tenth anniversary of lead singer Kurt Cobain?s death. The song stays faithful to the Nirvana track but manages to spice it up to the Fear Factory standard, and the fact that it isn?t a complete departure means I still enjoy it, despite the fact that it isn?t inherently my kind of music.

?Won't you
believe it
It's just my luck?


VERDICT


A departure lyrically and thematically from the band?s earlier albums, the musical style has returned to the heaviness of ?Demanufacture? while incorporating the melodic elements of ?Obsolete,? and this results in a great and distinctively Fear Factory sound. Based on the band?s history, an unimpressive remix album will be released at some point that will fail to do these tracks justice; many of them are great pieces of heavy, atmospheric, angry metal, performed by talented musicians who believe in what they are doing.

The fact that the lyrics criticise unoriginal ?artists? to such a degree is somewhat hypocritical considering Fear Factory?s lack of any real progression within these twelve album tracks, and this similarity prevents this album from attaining the high status of their afore-mentioned albums in my collection, but on further listens I may begin to appreciate it more. ?Archetype? shows an incredibly appealing direction in which I hope the band will continue, but the amount of aggressive, similar songs, complimented with less heavy offerings that sometimes seem a little forced, means that this is by no means an instant classic.

The limited edition release of this CD includes a bonus DVD covering the band's recent Australian tour and the production of this album. I have no problems with the change in band members like some dedicated fans have, especially as it means that Fear Factory are back to their position as the leaders of the industrial metal movement. The soul of the machine has indeed improved.


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DISCOGRAP& #72;Y:

Soul of a New Machine (1992)
Fear is the Mindkiller (1993, remixes)
Demanufacture (1994)
Remanufacture (1997, remixes)

Obsolete (1998)
Digimortal (2000)
Archetype (2004)

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