Rating: 6.9 Release Date: 2003 Record Label: Mighty Music Track list: Total playing time: 39:02 Band Website: Panzerchrist |
Panzerchrist - Room Service
For those who have disgraced themselves by claiming to not have heard this awesome band yet or their stupendous previous album, well to give you a fair idea, they sound like a supacatchy mash of European bands Exmortem and Vader with the Americans Morbid Angel and Malevolent Creation. Sounds exciting eh? Sure it does, but unfortunately over here they haven't carried it well enough. Possibly, one of the reasons for that could be the change in line-up even though it's more stable now. There are only a few good songs, some decent ones and the rest okay and just about tolerable - only because it's Panzerchrist. Allow me to elaborate more on the songs. I'll start off by stating that there is NOTHING new in the offering here, just the saaame rehashed stuff from 'Soul Collector'. They have picked only the catchiest riffs from that album and have tried to play it over and over again overlooking all other aspects of it. The descriptive and elegant song structures are gone, replaced by simplistic and banal ones and sadly as a result the songs have become much shorter. Even the extravagant flowing leads on their previous album have been mostly reduced to “feel cool” leads. Ironically, this time they made me cry too, but for the wrong reasons. Well not all of them are bad; there are some good ones too, couple of beautiful ones even, but overall they are not nearly half as enjoyable as the ones they played before. Surprisingly, there are even keyboards in some of the songs. Yes, keyboards - the utterly distasteful “mystikkal” kind that too. I really don't think that a highly proficient band such as Panzerchrist need to rely on cheap keyboards to make their music more interesting or appealing for that matter. (Perhaps they have the commercial crowd in mind). The vocals are acceptable but they are not as varied and effective as before either. Those passionate, muffled half-grunted, half-snarled vocals drippppping with saliva have mainly been transformed into mere laid-back fat and hoarse growls. Probably that only aspect here which surpasses their previous album is the production. Even though it's a tad unclear, its way more powerful and gives the much desired punch to the music. I dread to think what 'Soul Collector' would sound like with such a production. Frankly, I just can't find myself truly enjoying this album. It's decent but I've heard it all before, heard better and that too by the same band. It's like comparing Suffocation's 'Souls To Deny' with 'Pierced From Within'. For those die-hard Suffocation fans who expected the moon, disappointment was imminent. Same is the case here. And this isn't even a re-union album so it's even worse. It's in fact a clear regression. In conclusion, the latest model of this formidable Panzer tank is just bulk and steel and sorely lacks the essential firepower. If you like your death metal to be heavy and full of catchy riffs and hooks and don't care about anything else at all, you will find yourself liking this a good deal. But die-hard Panzerchrist fans like me are bound to be disappointed. To be honest, I see this as a deliberate move on their part to make it more appealing to a wider audience. Anyway, I would strongly suggest all of you to pick up 'Soul Collector' anyhow, sooner or later. It renders this album useless. |
