Artist:  Fear Factory
   Title: Mechanize
   Label: AFM Records  

The news that founding members Burton C. Bell and Dino Cazares were once again reunited in Fear Factory must have had many metal fans checking outside their windows for flying pigs such was the unlikelihood of this reunion after a number of rather unpleasant verbal exchanges between the two in the press.  But "time heals all wounds" as they say and after running into each other at a Ministry gig in Los Angeles the pair decided it was time to bury the hatchet and work together again. 

However, those who were hoping for a full reunion of the original Fear Factory line-up will be disappointed as although Burton C. Bell appears to have let bygones be bygones, Christian Olde Wolbers and Raymond Herrera felt differently and cited Dino’s return as the reason for their departure.  Enter Strapping Young Lad duo Byron Stroud on bass (who had actually been playing with band since Dino left) and Gene Hoglan on drums and their influence is clearly present throughout the album. 

Some fans will no doubt see the injection of new blood into Fear Factory as a good thing as the original line-up’s previous offering 'Digimortal' in 2001 saw the band move in a more nu-metal direction and resulted in the usual small-minded cries of ‘sell out’ by purists and the albums without Dino have received mixed reviews at best.

Opening track ‘Mechanize’ is the most aggressive, determined and driven that Fear Factory have sounded in quite some time and it becomes clear that this album is going to be as much a statement of intent as it will a top quality metal album. ‘Industrial Discipline’ recalls the glory days of 'Demanufacture' with Burton’s trademark haunting vocal melodies over the machine-gun-like drum beats and riffs that sound like they could crush buildings.  

‘Fear Campaign’ features ghostly spoken-word samples and keyboards from long-time band associate Rhys Fulber and really show how much newer bands such as Shadows Fall owe Fear Factory and tracks like ‘Powershifter’ and ‘Controlled Demolition’ are brutal aural assaults which feature some almost inhuman drum parts from Gene Hoglan and you begin to see how his addition to the band has really breathed new life into Fear Factory.  

The album closes with the 8-minute opus ‘Final Exit’ which encompasses the wide range of styles Fear Factory are capable of pulling off into 1 song and is nice way to round off the album. Yes, the Man vs. Machine theme is there in full and is so obvious you practically get beaten over the head with it but this really is a true return to form for a band that have been forgotten about for way too long.

Best Track – Industrial Discipline

Review by: Adam G

1. Mechanize
2. Industrial Discipline
3. Fear Campaign
4. Powershifter
5. Christploitation
6. Oxidizer
7. Controlled Demolition
8. Designing The Enemy
9. Metallic Division
10. Final Exit

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