Review Summary: A unique style of metal that may please some, irk others
Have you ever wondered what would commence if you took the vocals of Fall Out Boy, the electronic synths of a band like I See Stars, and added the lead guitars of a band like Conducting From the Grave? Well this is essentially what I Am Abomination sound like, and on their newest album, To Our Forefathers, it works with mixed results.
From the opener, Since 1776, I Am Abomination puts their combination of punk sung vocals with aggressive lead work and meandering snyths right in your face. The guitars employ sweep after sweep and when their not engaging in some crafty lead work, they are chugging along with abandon. Songs like Cataclysm and Creatures of the Night showcase the guitar work on To Our Forefathers.
The guitars are the highlight of the album in terms of technicality, but the other members of the band do their parts. The keyboard work adds a nice element, mostly providing background ambience but occasionally coming up front for a short solo or lick. The drummer and bassist do their parts respectively, but they really are there to provide a rhythm section for the guitars meandering runs. The vocals are your standard pop-punk vocals, sounding close to Fall Out Boy, which might seem weird in a metal album, but doesn’t sound completely out of place on To Our Forefathers.
Although this album has a lot of positives going for it, it does suffer from some faults that make it a challenging listen to get through. The guitar work is excellent, yes, but really does not bring anything new to the table. They basically are either in rhythm chug mode, or solo sweep mode. The keyboards are there for ambience, but half the time they do not make any impact at all on the song, and therefore really are out of place at times. The drums and bass are also irrelevant, as they plod along playing basic rhythms that do nothing to enhance the rest of the band or the songs in general. Finally we have the vocals. The lack of vocal variety, of any sort, is disappointing. The songs all seem to have the same basic sounds, with only the guitar solos bringing any sort of noticeable variety to For Our Forefathers.
This album is an interesting listen. The lack of harsh vocals took me by surprise and gave me some hope, but in the end this band is plagued by repetitiveness through and through which means there is not much room for multiple listens. The band has potential, and this album would be a good choice for those who wish to get into metal but do not like harsh vocals, but for most listeners this album will not satisfy.
