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User
Reviews 36
Approval 84%
Soundoffs 108
News Articles 13
Band Edits + Tags 22
Album Edits 54
Album Ratings 3504
Objectivity 69%
Last Active 12-04-14 4:21 am
Joined 02-03-07
Review Comments 19,174
| Soilwork Ranked
I don't give these guys enough credit, sure they've released some
crappy songs but I also enjoy a good portion of they've released. They
also were one of the first "extreme metal" bands I got in to before I
became a member of sputnik in February 07, so there's some
sentimental value there too. It's surprising how much they've
changed since Steelbath Suicide and The Chainheart Machine. | | 8 |  | Soilwork
Sworn to a Great Divide
The muddy production and chugging on this album almost kills this album. Half
of the songs seem hastily composed and uninspired, often transpiring into
cringe-worthy musical moments. Luckily, there are some diamonds in the
rough, such as the churning "As the Sleeper Awakes," the experimental "Sick
Heart River," or the aggressive throwback of "The Pittsburgh Syndrome." A
disappointment though. 2.8/5 | | 7 |  | Soilwork
Figure Number Five
Soilwork completely watered down their sound on this album, becoming much
more focused on catchy song-writing and synthy overtones. This album features
some of the worst songs Soilwork have written, but at the same time the
opening duo of "Rejection Role" and "Overload" are simple, but very effective
songs in their own right. Cranking the Sirens also features a massively catchy
chorus although paired with subpar verses. 3.1/5 | | 6 |  | Soilwork
Stabbing the Drama
A solid album which has been a staple of my summer playlists for the past 4-5
years. It's not Soilwork's most intelligent or technical album, but it makes up for
that with massive choruses, churning riffs, and a very fun and accessible
atmosphere. The best track on here would have to be the mellow (by Soilwork
standards) bonus track, "Wherever Thorns May Grow," with it's laid back
choruses and swelling synths, though the aggressive back-to-back juggernaut of
"Weapon of Vanity" and "The Crestfallen" are also up there in terms of quality.
And it'd be an injustice not to mention the positively soaring chorus of the title
track. 3.5/5 | | 5 |  | Soilwork
Steelbath Suicide
Soilwork's debut album, which is not far off from being a complete At the Gates
clone. This is stereotypical gothernberg styled speed-influenced melodic death
metal, although despite its unoriginality, it is of relatively high quality. I would
also place this as the most consistent Soilwork album in terms of quality - there
are no songs that I would truly place as Soilworks classics, yet all 11 songs are
very solid on their own rights, with the offbeat "Sadistic Lullaby" and
instrumentally sound closer "The Aardvark Trail" being the highlights of a
musically impressive debut which lacked identity. 3.7/5 (this and Natural Born
Chaos are about interchangeable) | | 4 |  | Soilwork
Natural Born Chaos
Soilwork's controversial transitional album. This is where Soilwork began to
become less influenced by their melodeath contemporaries, and began
incorporating sounds more akin to the American metal/metalcore scene. Despite
some inconsistencies in quality (songs such as the title track, Mercury Shadow,
and No More Angels are pretty bad compared to the album's stronger cuts)
Natural Born Chaos still manages to be one of Soilwork's most engaging listens.
Whether it be the pummeling opening trio of songs, the Devin Townsend fueled
insanity of Black Star Deceiver, or the majestic and keyboard-driven Song of the
Damned, Natural Born Chaos was a strong overall effort from Soilwork. 3.7/5 | | 3 |  | Soilwork
The Panic Broadcast
This has only been available for a few weeks, but I am wholly satisfied thus far
with it's release. This is easily Soilwork's most solid album quality wise since
their early days, with the only duds being the album's heavier cuts (namely
Late For the Kill and King of the Threshold). Songs such as Let This River Flow
(which coincidentally is their best song since Song of the Damned) and The
Thrill feature soaring vocal melodies and unique off-kilter instrumental
breakdowns. 3.9/5 | | 2 |  | Soilwork
The Chainheart Machine
Soilwork's sophomore release, where they started to branch away from being
merely At the Gates clones. Undoubtedly Soilwork's most intense album, the
album's major flaw lies within it's repetitiveness towards the middle of the
album. After the blistering (cliche but worthy adjective) title-track, the next four
tracks each seem to play out as a weaker version of the former track. However,
when the breakneck speed of "Possessing the Angels" kicks in at track number
6 (perhaps the most aggressive song the band has ever recorded), the album
finishes with some of Soilwork's highest quality tracks. Spirits of the Future Sun
features a spine-chilling opening guitar lead, and experiences many tempo and
structure changes throughout it's entire 6-minute run. Machine Gun Majesty
features the best instrumental break in the entire Soilwork discography, and
Room No. 99 manages to be every bit as infectious (albeit in a much more
sinister way) as their later works, minus the clean vocals. 4.1/5 | | 1 | | Soilwork
A Predator's Portrait
This was one of my favorite albums of all time when I first heard it sometime back in
2006, and when I joined sputnik it was my first (terrible) review. This was the
first album of which Speed began incorporating clean vocals into the band's
traditional melodeath sound. However, unlike later albums where the melodies
became the watered down, sugary focal points of the song, the clean vocals
really enhance the album's dark, mysterious atmosphere when they're used.
Unlike other gothenberg contemporaries such as The Jester Race or The Gallery,
Soilwork seem to be less focuses on melody than they are pummeling the
listener into submission. It may not have had the impact an album like
Slaughter of the Soul had, but with A Predator's Portrait Soilwork found their
identity and peaked out on musicianship. 4.5/5 | |
Yazz_Flute
07.12.10 | fucking apostrophes | Locrian
07.12.10 | Ranking is entirely correct. I'll be getting 3 in its entirety tomorrow when it's released in the U.S. | Yazz_Flute
07.12.10 | Haha I keep forgetting it hasn't been released yet, I should probably get the actual album too. | LG
07.12.10 | STD needs to be higher bro, other then that completely agree. | Yazz_Flute
07.13.10 | I used to have STD above NBC but i've been giving them a lot of listens lately and decided it doesn't have enough tracks that really stand out, it's more of a consistent record. | acADHDemy
07.13.10 | i rly like stabbing the drama |
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