Search - Scar Symmetry :: Dark Matter Dimensions

Scar Symmetry Pushes to Progressive Metal Territory

Christopher | Charleston, SC | 04/13/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Look, let's face it: Christian Alvestam is a god among men. We already knew this. He has the Midas Touch - Every band he fronts as a vocalist suddenly become amazing. However, his departure does not spell the end for this amazing band. You still have some of the best guitarists and drummers that can be found in a Melodic Death Metal band and that should be reason enough to keep hope for this band.



That aside, the two new vocalists aren't a copy of Christian. Then again, if they were, I think the sound would be stagnant and too reminiscent to Holographic Universe to justify a new album. And this is coming from one of the biggest Christian Alvestam fanboys out there...These guys are good! I would say that Lars seems to be more comfortable in the higher ranges and the growls that Roberth belts out are still as brutal as they come. Don't be afraid that Christian is gone, these two new vocalists are definitely worthy of the Scar Symmetry name.



That aside, I'm now going to take a look into the album itself. Yep, they still focus somewhat on universe-related lyrics, but they also add in other interesting topics. The Iconoclast deals with religious issues, Mechanical Soul Cybernetics is somewhat in the same vein of "Pitch Black Progress" in that it deals with the dangers of technology, and A Parenthesis in Eternity seems to deal a lot with the future. The lyrics are once again top notch, and it is definitely an album with substance to it.



This album, more so than ANY other Christian Alvestam album and even more so than most Melodic Death Metal bands focuses on the Progressive/Technical metal aspect of it. 8 string guitars, insane time signature changes, and amazing drumming all combine to make this something more than they have tried to do before. This album is definitely more experimental than the others, but this isn't unusual when you consider songs they have done before (Holographic Universe, Ghost Prototype II, Deviate from the Form). It's a refreshing change of pace from their other albums, yet...strangely still 100% Scar Symmetry. I feel that this album is far less scripted and mainstream than their other albums; in a music world filled with chorus-verse-chorus melodic death bands and pop/mainstream garbage, this album breaks from the mold. They take their music to new levels when all of the doubters and Alvestam fanboys thought they were doomed. This is the album that will dismiss all but the most closed-minded cynics. The sound is much in the same vein as what you have come to expect from them: Beautiful choruses and brutal verses mixed in with the most insane guitar work to date. If you are a fan of Melodic Death Metal, Technical Death Metal, Progressive Metal, or even just good music, this is DEFINITELY work a listen.



Here is a my rating of all the songs on this album and positive/negative aspects of each:



The Iconoclast - 90/100 - Has one of the most amazing intro and exits in any Melodic Death Metal song. Roberth delivers brutal growls at the onset, and Lars has some amazing clean vocals to complement the brutality. Very good opening track. Sets the tone for the album in a perfect manner.



The Consciousness Eaters - 95/100 - Extremely interesting track that alternates between the death vocals of Roberth and the high flying voice of Lars. Definitely one of the better tracks on the album, especially in the guitar department.



Noumenon and Phenomenon - 90/100 - This is the first single from the album. Not the best song, but then again, not the worst either. I think it's a great representation of the album's goal: Melody and Heaviness tied together with excellent drum work and amazing guitars. The only downside of this song is that, of all the songs on the album, this is the one that seems a bit repetitive. Still better than 90 percent of other death metal bands though.





Ascension Chamber - 97/100 - I love how progressive this song feels. It has the powerful choruses that define Scar Symmetry, but this is the song that I feel has Roberth Karrlson (the Growler) come into his own. This is definitely a technical song to pull off. The drums power through the song and guide you through the music. The guitars are absolutely amazing off of this one. Of particular note in this song is the middle softer section at 2:08. It allows Roberth to belt out some of the most powerful growls on the entire album. Very cool song to listen to.



Mechanical Soul Cybernetics - 98/100 - I know what you're thinking, "How the hell did this guy give this weird song a 98?" Well, I'll explain right here. First of all, the clean vocalist does a lot of screaming on this song, which adds depth that isn't in some of the other songs. Not only that, the choreography that had to have been done to perfectly switch from Roberth's growls to Lars' screams was perfect. This song delivers not only in the brutality section, but also in the experimental category. The bassist (Kenneth Seil) definitely does a tremendous job here too. However, the most stunning performance comes from Per Nillson and Jonas Kjellgren on the guitars. These guys use full on 8 string guitars throughout the whole song and do an amazing job on them too. The first time I listened to this, I said..."What the hell are they doing?!?" but after two or three listens, it's definitely in my top three on the album. Give this song a chance. Hell, this song alone allows me to call the entire album "Progressive Metal." The solo is also probably the most technically difficult one to pull off on the album (remember the 8 string guitar...) All in all, a very neat track.



Non-Human Era - 85/100 - Not my favorite on the album, but then again, I could point out many bands that couldn't even reach this level if they tried (-cough-New In Flames-cough-). The song just feels too scripted...like the verse chorus verse thing I pointed out earlier. This isn't one to skip over, as Per Nillson does a great job on the guitar work here (as usual), but this is one of the weaker tracks on this album.



Dark Matter Dimensions - 100/100 - One of the few perfect songs that they put out here. I can't name much wrong with it at all. Everything just seems so right. The drums are absolutely epic, the guitar work is flawless, you can hear Kenneth Seil (bass) going to town here. What is most notable on this track is the fact that the two new vocalists' performances are flawless also. Both of them do death vocals at various parts of the song, and Roberth even does clean vocals in the chorus! The most notable section is the part right after the 2nd chorus where Lars Palmqvist delivers an amazing performance reminiscent of power metal. Don't flame me, but I feel that Lars puts on a more powerful vocal performance in this section than Christian might have been able to do. Christian is amazing, but Lars just feels more comfortable in this role and the interlude in this song proves it.



Sculptor Void - 83/100 - This has some notable parts (for example the solo Per Nillson pulls off), but for the most part, this is an unfortunately forgettable song. I feel that Scar Symmetry could have cut this if need be, or they could have put more work into it, but either way, I don't much like it. It feels almost like the vocalists are half-doing it on this one. Again, still not a bad song at all...Scar Symmetry just doesn't make "bad songs," but they do make forgettable ones that just don't stand out among their crowd of epic songs. Cool outro though!



A Parenthesis in Eternity - 125/100 - Yes, it's THAT good. I mean, wow. Just, wow...wow. The pinnacle of the whole album for sure. The guitar work reminds me of Iron Maiden or another power metal band in its beauty. The intro clean guitar section is amazing in its simplistic awesomeness. The vocal performance by Lars (clean vocalist) here is just indescribable. Roberth has some growling sections in here, but the overall mood of this track is light, hopeful, ambitious. It tries to do so much and, well, it succeeds. I bought the album just for this song, just so I could hear in in my car on the way to work or school. Jonas Kjellgren finally does lead guitar work here and boy does he pull it off. I mean, just WOW! Perfect song. Go on YouTube to listen to it or however you can, but just preview this track alone and you'll be blown away like I was. Everything is in moderation on this song. There isn't too much growling, there isn't too much screaming, and the clean vocals fit perfect for this type of track. No, these guys don't sound like Christian Alvestam, but after hearing this track, I didn't care.





Frequencyshifter - 82/100 - Again, like Sculptor Void, this track just feels a bit lacking. The vocals are great, that isn't the issue, it's just the overall "feel" to it. It's almost like they said, "Well, we have 10 tracks, let's make it 11!" I don't know, perhaps I am being too critical here. This is what I feel is the weakest song on the album. The guitar work is perfect, hell, more than perfect. The solo is one of the best on the album, which saved it from getting a failing grade. Overall, if I had to buy the tracks one at a time, I wouldn't get this one. But since it came in with the other amazing tracks, I didn't mind it as much. Not garbage, but definitely the weakest on the album. And a little note from me to whoever reads this, "A 'weak' song from Scar Symmetry still beats anything of Soilwork or In Flames." "Weak" is a relative term. It's "weak" compared to what they could have pulled off, but it's still a very technical song and a good performance.



Radiant Strain - 90/100 - Incredible introduction. The beat that begins there is simply bad***, pardon my French :) I will say that, like with the other two weak tracks, they could have put more into it, but the performances from Per Nillson and Henrik Ohlsson (the drummer) more than compensate for the slightly weak performance from Roberth and Lars here. Pretty good overall.



*Bonus Track* Pariah - 100/100 - Beautiful. Very progressive feel to it: Everything from the way the vocals are performed to the timing of solos and drum work prove that. The vocal performance delivered from the new guys is amazing. They do this role perfectly and give the song power. Per Nillson gives the song a soul with his guitar work. Henrik Ohllson gives the song a pulse with his driving drum work, and Kenneth Seil and Jonas Kjellgren give the song substance with their noticeable additions to the track. Without these two guys, the song would feel weak, and just nowhere near as epic. The outro was also amazing. Over a minute and a half of mind melting guitar work from Per Nillson. This makes this song much in the same vein of "Deviate from the Form." A great ending track to an overall great album.





Overall rating for the Album - 95/100. The album is perfect in many regards, and, as a fan of Progressive Metal, this is definitely a step in the right direction. If you love amazing guitar work and epic drumming combined with top notch vocal presentations, then Dark Matter Dimensions is the album for you."