In Flames is a familiar name to anyone who has been thrusting
around metal in the last ten years. In Flames, Dark Tranquility,
Soilwork and At The Gates are among the core group of Swedish
bands that created the so-called "Gothenburg sound" in the
90's. These Swedish pioneers mixed the guitar melody of Iron Maiden
and the grind of Cannibal Corpse to form what is often referred
to the "melodic death metal" style. Since then, many bands
from different countries have followed these pioneers : Germany (Dew-Scented)
or France (Lyzanxia).
Mindcrimes is the second record of the French band which follows
their sophomore record Eden. Of course, the song-writing has
improved a lot and the recent path opened by In Flames and/or
Soilwork is palpable on Mindcrimes. Lyzanxia follows
the "innovative sounds" of Reroute To Remain (In Flames),
with the apparition of clear vocals too - who said this is the new trend
? Ok, I agree that the wake-up call arrives with some guttural buzz
here and there (Damnesia, Black Side). The French accent
of the singer is evident with the crystal clear vocals, but it doesn't
hurt the listenertoo much. The best tracks are the opener Time Dealer
- a classic melodic death metal song - the second track Medulla
Need, My Blank Confession, Dusk - with its Black Sabbath
pounding riff - and Black Side.
The guitar work - riff and rhythm section - is really impressive and
the tones of melodic "Maidenish" riff flooding from everywhere
is the trademark of Mindcrimes. Between you and me, this is very
much in line with last Dark Tranquility album. I would say actually
that the frontier between Lyzanxia and Dark Tranquility
is very thin. Sometimes the French band accelerates and choose the Megadeth
thrash side - Silence Code, Game Time or Mind Split -
but overall, I can't say Lyzanxia innovates that much.
Don't misunderstand me : Mindcrimes has all the "necessary"
and typical melodic death metal elements to be accepted by the fans
of this genre. But like the true metal wave, there are too many bands
out there following the same path, "killing in the egg" the
surprise of the early years of the Gothenburg sound. One last word about
Fredrik Nordström's production : topnotch. The sound of each instruments
is clear, distinct, especially the bass sound. DreamEvil's guitarist
is definitely Mr. Production these days !
To conclude, I have really appreciated the power metal feeling of Mindcrimes,
the same one that exists on The Jester Race, In Flames
or Damage Done, Dark Tranquility. However, where Eden
had this refreshing Megadeth side, Mindcrimes suffers
from the tones of Scandinavian band playing in the same league.
If you're are a fan of In Flames, Dark Tranquility,
Soilwork, Raise Hell, Dew-Scented or At The Gates, check
this Mindcrimes as something tells me you will like this album
:)