Review Summary: "Creativity doesn't always mean progression"
For all not familiar with these guys , Believer is a christian Metal band known mainly for rapidly progressing from a noisy death/thrash sound to an out of this world technical thrash band within two albums before hanging it up for over a decade. I know I listened to some of their comeback record, Gabriel, when it dropped, but I have no memory of it, making Transhuman a bit of a surprise to me.
Now, the music is a little brighter sounding than before. The production is very updated and everything is audible down to the rattling of the bass. The opener "Lie Awake" is full of great melody and harmony and Joey Daub's drumming gives a rhythmic flow to the track. "G.U.T" holds an good chorus, adding even more depth to the vocals. "End of Infinity" starts out with a great guitar riff with an additional edgy and haunting solo, and the electronics added to Bachman's voice give an atmospheric vibe to the track. "Currents" slows down to a softer vibe with more noticeable keyboards and electronics that will mesmerize the listener. "Ego Machine" shreds with guitar along with Daub's technical drumming and Bachman goes straight into hardcore with his modern brutal vocals.
The vocals of Kurt Bachman do deserve special mention, as I’m pretty shure that half of the listeners will not like it, while the other half will share my opinion. Although off-kilter and heavily processed in places, they retain a very real warmth and character, which is both distinctive and perfectly suited to Believer’s expansive take on modern metal in all its forms.
However, while a lot of what I’ve said about their newer aesthetic sounds positive, the actual direction is long in the tooth. The modern rock slant is terribly bland some of the time, and the band vividly plays against their strengths by trying to make the listening experience easy to handle. There are also moments that could easily pass for a heavier Nu Metal band (“Multiverse”) and that isn’t good by any means. As a consequence of that, by the time I finished listening to “Transhuman”, I felt it was pretty good but also forgettable. You'd think several listens though would have been enough for it to sink in. But it didn't. I'll be curious to see what others have to say about this because for me there are conflicting feelings.
In Believer’s obvious attempt to grow, they have instead stepped backwards and denied their true talents. As a result, it cements them into the lower tiers with no forthcoming sign of elevation. And that is a real shame, because while there are many signs of excellence and many positives to this disc, the negatives inexorably creep in along the way.
Recommended Tracks:
- Lie Awake
- End Of Infinity
- Traveler
