Supercharger

I think Machine Head is still running after they "phenomenal" success of their first album (Burn My Eyes, 1994) and usually such rapid success is very difficult to confirm. The following album (The More Things Change..., 1997) didn't hit that much and The Burning Red (1999) has restored some hope. Between you and me, I have this feeling that Machine Head performed well when heavy metal was dead ... but now things are very different .... and it looks like nu metal is suffering very much. Who said things change ;-) After a wonderful intro, which reminds me very much the intro of Shout At The Devil (Mötley Crüe), first song Bulldozer takes place. Robb Flynn (vocalist, guitar) and his friends are still playing nu metal, aggressive riffs, shouting vocals to your face with full hate. However, I have to admit that Rob is much more melodic on Supercharger and some arrangement will remind you somehow Demolition (Judas Priest) ... or may be that's Judas Priest who sounds now like nu metal. Songs like Crashing Around You, Kick You When You're Down or All In Your Head (thank you Slayer) are explosive tracks. However, from the first track till the last one, I have this taste to listen to the same track again, again and again. A bit too repetitive for my taste. Overall if you like nu metal, Supercharger will not disappointing you .... even though Rob seems to feel the "change of the wind" and has added here and there some heavy & thrash metal structure in his hip-hop nu metal. Rob, do you feel Machine Head get tired this days ? In France, there was a magazine called Hard Force, were journalists were laughing at the performances of heavy, thrash, death, black and true metal bands. They were venerating nu metal (Machine Head, Rage Against The Machine, Soulfly, .....). Today this magazine doesn't exist anymore ;-). Machine Head has been a phenomena of fashion ... and as you all know ... fashion comes and go.