The Red Chord released their first record in 2002,
Fused Together In Revolving Doors, and an impressive first album it was too. Arguably the best metal album of it's year,
Fused Together combined death metal and grind to with some very deep vocals to make an extremely technical and original sound. Their newest album,
Clients is their second album.
The Red Chord
Guy Kozowyk - Vocals
Mike Mckenzie - Guitar, Vocals
Gregory Weeks - Bass
Brad Fickeisen - Drums
Most fans of new techincal and extreme metal will remember The Red Chord's debut. It was full of massive riffs, technical changes, extreme vocals, the odd jazz influenced part and even some cool breakdowns. Despite the presence of breakdowns, The Red Chord are no hardcore/metalcore band. At least they weren't. With the release of
Clients, The Red Chord have evolved significantly. Or perhaps devolved is a better description. The new sound is not just a step towards mainstreaming their sound, it goes the whole way.
Clients is, in short, a metalcore album. While their debut showed a definite new sound, it was definitely no metalcore album. Though the band would fit in with Unearth and such,
Fused Together In Revolving Doors would be much more comfortable sitting next to a Cryptopsy cd than a Norma Jean one.
Clients, however, would sit comfortably next to a metalcore cd, without complaint. The simple reason is that it fits right in with Unearth, As I Lay Dying and whatever other metalcore band is blasting through the speakers of angry teenagers this week.
On it's own,
Clients isn't bad at all. Although the metalcore vocals do not suit so well, the music of it is excellent. There are some pretty interesting riffs and sounds on offer, though they are definitely nothing that hasn't been heard before. The sound of the album remains the same throughout. The vocals very rarely change to half understandable metalcore styles that don't suit Guy's voice anyway. There are a few clean sections, which are snatched up before they get a chance to become interesting. Basically, it's hard for someone who found the band's debut impressive to see where they went wrong. It's such an incredibly big and premature change that there is little choice than to believe that The Red Chord, have in fact, sold out. At least somewhat. If this were any standard metalcore band, this would be an impressive album. However, it's incredibly hard to ignore the fact that the band who recorded this disc is The Red Chord. The guys who made that crazy disc in 2002. Though
Clients is decidedly average, hope is not lost. Lets hope they redeem themselves for their next album.
Pros
Though they rarely get developed, there are some interesting ideas
The vocals never change, but they generally work
The song "Clients" sounds as impressive as the old stuff (only 1 minute long though)
Cons
Generic metalcore
The vocals suck when they are used in a hardcore or metalcore fashion
What the hell happened?
Reccomended Tracks
Fixation on Plastics
Clients
He Was Dead When I Got There
FINAL RATING: 3/5
