Search - Fear Factory :: Mechanize

The Ultimate Comeback.

Brian Nallick | Mpls, MN | 02/12/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I know a lot of bands say that their new album is the best album they've done since.........their one album that everyone says is their best.

I won't name bands, you know who I'm talking about.

But are their new albums a match for their masterpieces?

Hardly.

With Fear Factory it's always been about Demanufacture.

Some will argue that Obsolete is their best.

My favorite was always Demanufacture.

So upon hearing and reading about all the turmoil in the band I was rather happy with Archetype. It was still a great album.

Transgression on the other hand...............I blame the label for forcing the product before it was ready.

And then.............more band turmoil and we're now left with Burton and Dino again with Stroud and Hoglan.

And how does it measure up?

Does it actually match the almighty and eternal Demanufacture?

I didn't have my hopes set that high. I loved Divine Heresy's last album Bringer of Plagues and was hoping Mechanize would be at least half that good.

Man was I wrong.

Not only does this album equal Demanufacture I'd say its a few notches above it.

This album has done to me what NO album has done since I was a teenager.

I could literally feel the hair on the back of my neck stand up and by the time I got to Christploitation I was ready to break every window in my house.

This album literally made me want to go bezerk.

I'm 35 and it's hard to get an old geezer metal head to feel like this.

My favorite track is Christploitation but really, every song on this disc simply DESTROYS.

Everything that was great about Demanufacture is back and bigger and better.

It's heavy, it's fast, it's got the creepy keys and the creepy moaning vocals of Burton here and there.

This is simply the best disc Fear Factory has ever done and it BETTER NOT BE THEIR LAST!!!

Welcome back Dino, you really are the one who MADE this band what it was.

Gene and Byron bring a whole new intensity to FF that I've never heard before.

And lastly to all these bands that say that they can never do another album like the "old days".

I used to agree with them till I heard Mechanize.

If Fear Factory, after twenty years and constant in fighting can put out the album of their lives then what's YOUR excuse???

Mechanize is THE album on 2010. If FF doesn't get a grammy nod for this, then there IS no justice.

A masterpiece from start to finish.

Raw, brutal, unique and utterly devastating.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!

"

Fear Factory Remanufactured.

Andrew Estes | Maine | 02/09/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The story of how Fear Factory's seventh album, "Mechanize," came to be is a rather messy one. After putting Fear Factory on the back-burner last year, frontman Burton C. Bell patched up his toxic relationship with former guitarist Dino Cazares, only to re-form the band without the consent of its other half. Drummer Raymond Herrera and bassist-turned-guitarist Christian Olde Wolbers were out, while bassist Byron Stroud (who played with the band on their two Dino-less albums) and drummer/workhorse Gene Hoglan (Strapping Young Lad, Dethklok) rounded out the newest incarnation of Fear Factory. With some legal wrangling and a few dozen Blabbermouth headlines, the album has miraculously seen the light of day.



Re-united with longtime collaborator Rhys Fulber, the men that now make up Fear Factory are bound and determined to make "Mechanize" a glorious return to form. Truth be told, "Mechanize" is about as good as anything Fear Factory has produced in the last decade. Falling somewhere between the soul-crushing power of Demanufacture and the matured song-writing and dynamics of Obsolete, the album tries for and succeeds at recapturing the band's glory days. Burton and Dino sound as if they have entered a time-warp roughly somewhere around 1997, while drummer Gene Hoglan does a solid job of aping his predecessor. As for Byron Stroud, well, he delivers as expected, but let's face it: the role of the bass-player in Fear Factory has always been irrelevant.



The one thing that sets "Mechanize" aside from the albums it tries to emulate, though, is the shift from the "Man vs. Machine" theme so prevalent in the past. The bluntly-titled "Christploitation" finds Bell calling out organized religion, while "Powershifter" and "Fear Campaign" are more politically charged fare. While the topics explored are certainly nothing new for the metal genre, it helps the album stand on its own merits. As always, though, the main attraction is Burton's intense growl, which is matched only by his haunting melodies, as well as Dino's riffing and the insane drumming that comes with the Fear Factory brand, and this album more than does the name justice. There are plenty of songs here that will knock you off your feet, but there are also moments where the band brings on the melody and ambience in true Fear Factory fashion to ensure the experience is an authentic one.



In spite of the fact that "Mechanize" does little to expand on the tried and true Fear Factory sound, it's a strong return to form that will no doubt please fans who were confused by the experimental (and, in this reviewer's opinion, under-rated) Transgression and only help to further cement the band's legacy as one of the most distinct bands in the metal game. Even if you think Burton and Dino are a couple of unsavory characters for giving their former bandmates the cold shoulder the way they did, you can't help but love them for making the album they did and staying true to their name. Who knows how long the two can tolerate each other this time around, but hopefully there will be more albums like this one to come.

"

I don't care about the drama, it's fear factory and it sound

"Giles The Axeman" | North Carolina | 02/10/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"i had a gut feeling this was going to be a great fear factory album it's fast catchy and emotional on the chorus just like obsolete and archetype but the album stands it own ground, dino still kicks ass as i assure you the rest of the band members do too. so get it and enjoy it"