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Chimaira - Chimaira

 

	RELEASED:August 9th, 2005 PRODUCER: Ben Shigel, Mark Hunter LABEL: Roadrunner Records BAND: Mark Hunter Kevin Talley Matt Devries Rob Arnold Jim LaMarca Chris Spicuzza
+ Wah-soaked guitar solos, some truly pummeling riffs, brutal drumming - Some songs drone, a few overly simple riffs	TRACKS: 1. Nothing Remains 2. Save Ourselves 3. Inside The Horror 4. Salvation 5. Comatose 6. Left For Dead 7. Everything You Love 8. Bloodlust 9. Pray For All 10. Lazarus

OVERVIEW

With today’s metal scene being so saturated with breakdown-riddled In Flames copycats, it’s refreshing to see a band that has the guts to take a bit of a different approach. Chimaira’s self-titled record is pretty much a natural evolution of the groove metal sound made popular by bands like Pantera, Machine Head, and Prong, infused with some serious death-influenced drumming (courtesy of Dying Fetus/Misery Index alum Kevin Talley), and a shot of electronics a la Fear Factory or Nine Inch Nails.  What sells me on this band is their songwriting – even the weaker cuts on this disc sound like a coherent song, instead of the cut-and-paste hodgepodge less experienced bands fall into.

            Speaking of which, there’s not much in the way of weak tracks on here – the first 5 tracks make for a devastating auditory assault with a perfect balance of fast and slow riffing, surgically precise drumming, and even though Mark Hunter’s distorted roar isn’t the most versatile voice around, he’s surprisingly adept at utilizing it in a way that complements the music, not dominates it.  And the solos?  It’s about freaking time somebody had the guts to step on a wah pedal again, and Matt Devries and Rob Arnold aren’t afraid to go at it the old-fashioned way, with a clear distinction between leads & seriously crunchy rhythm guitar parts.  You won’t find much in the way of dual harmonized leads; this is a straight-up, maintain-the-groove approach, but the fact that they stick to the old-school American metal guns and don’t shamelessly cop Soilwork melodies is commendable in my book.                                                                                        

SONGS

“Nothing Remains” tiptoes in with a basic drum beat and some ambient, NIN-esque electronics, but as soon as the whole band kicks in, this song smashes the gas and never lets up.  “Save Ourselves” feels a bit slower by comparison, but the dual Hammett-style guitar solos on this one are some of the best I’ve heard in a long time, and “Inside the Horror” is just plain savage – don’t miss the half-time, Burn My Eyes-esque brutality once the chorus kicks in.  “Salvation” is another one of my favorite cuts on here, with expertly applied melodic backup vocals and another and a solo that just screams homage to Dimebag Darrell.  “Comatose” is another kick in the throat with some excellent drum footwork to complement the razor-sharp riffage, and “Left For Dead” has some great riffing, but suffers a bit from keeping mostly the same feel until almost the 3-minute mark.  “Everything You Love” suffers from almost a nu-metal feel and a few painfully simple riffs, making it one of the weaker tracks, and “Bloodlust” is pushing it at 7 minutes without a whole lot of variation, but it’s right back to brutal form with “Pray For All”, an almost thrashy number with some truly vicious riffing and double bass.  This leaves us with another 7-minute number to close the record, but “Lazarus” sees the band working infinitely better with dynamics, tempos, and balancing heaviness with melody and more complex composition to make this longer number a constantly engaging listen.

CONCLUSION

This album’s a grower – when I first picked it up, I admittedly wasn’t that impressed, possibly because of the slightly flat production or the length of some of these songs (the shortest cut on here is still 4:42), but after a few spins, Chimaira’s proficiency at their chosen style becomes more and more obvious.  If you’re looking for something that picks up right where Pantera, Machine Head, and Fear Factory left off in the 1990’s, but with a completely modern sound and some serious guitar work, don’t miss this album.  It’s got a couple weaker cuts, but the band’s obvious willingness to carry the groove-metal torch in style makes this a seriously pummeling listen.

Review by Matt Rewinski