Review Summary: Soilwork returns with what we never thought would happen again: A good album.
"The Panic Broadcast: Portrait of an Event" was a book by Howard Koch, published in 1970, that chronicled the events of the "War of the Worlds" radio broadcast where, legend has it, it threw the country into a panic (It actually didn't) because everyone from the 1930's was a goddamned idiot (They weren't). I'm not sure of the connection Soilwork was trying to make, or if there was one: As if them writing solid songs and giving us a good dose of their signature form of metal would incite riots? I don't know. Maybe it just sounded cool (It doesn't).
So, yes, album number eight. Soilwork has all but confirmed that they have two things going for them:
1. They write catchy choruses
2. They can, when prodded, create some solid songwriting
And, opposed, two things going against them:
1. They are horribly unoriginal
2. They are horribly unoriginal in a very easy-to-digest package
This hasn't changed over the years, at least not much, with the standout exceptions being their first two efforts. Fortunately, a band can get away with a lot if they can manage to cobble together some tight and concise songwriting, and The Panic Broadcast is just that: A career retrospect of Soilworks previous works all laid out within an airtight framework of Gothenburg-tinged modern metal, their signature dynamics engraved in each song and each one performing well overall, with the occasional slipups here and there.
Coming off the embarrassment that was Sworn to a Great Divide, Soilwork produces what is easily their best album opener since "Bastard Chain", "Late for the Kill, Early for the Slaughter" evokes a metric ***ton of Chainheart Machine for four minutes. The solo in it showcases Wichers ability to craft some nice Insomnium-ish melodic shredding, and some of the skill that Verbueren was so adamant on showing off in Sybreeds Antares album makes its presence known here.
Speed is just as love-him-or-leave-him as always. I found his performance to be pretty energized and much more varied this time, but still being unable to hit the sweet spot of a few choruses, and his ever-ridiculous lyrics are here as always. I don't know if its a translation problem or he really is a few IQ points short of a Sports Medicine degree, but his lyrics are surreal in a just-learning-to-talk sort of way.
The initial surprise out of the way, the rest of the album is a Soilwork album. I mean, ***, what did you expect? It is, for all intents and purposes, the signature sound the Swedish band who has perpetually been behind-the-curve has come to make their own, and nothing big has changed stylistically.
What you will find here is solid songwriting. It's a cohesive, fun album that makes for great driving music. The choruses are big, anthemic, and beg to be sung to. The verses are dirty, nasty, slithering bits of riffery that vary between staccato chug (Not nu-metal), thrashy noodling (not metalcore), and aching melody. At times they tend to wear some of their influences on their sleeves, and you'll hear Opeth, old In Flames, and even some Arch Enemy pop up here and there. Other times, their dedication to the chorus can actually hinder a great tune ("The Thrill" is an example). None of these are huge detractors from the overall effort. Even a few more experimental sections will pop up here and there ("The Thrill", again), showing that the band has focused and is being a bit playful with the songs.
In short:
If you think a palm muted power chord is nu-metal, you won't like this, even though you like death metal bands who do it day-in and day-out.
If you like old Soilwork (First two albums), you may like this.
If you like all of Soilworks albums, you're just reading this to fluff your own opinion of the band and album. You know damn well you've had it torrented for a bit and, chances are, you're listening to it. Right now.
