Machinae Supremacy - Overworld |
Published January 17 2008
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Overworld* |
| Genre | SID Metal |
Robert Stjärnström
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Vocals
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| Tracks | 12 |
Robert Stjärnström
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Guitar
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| Runningtime | 52 Min. |
Jonas Rörling
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Guitar
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| Label | Spinefarm Records |
Johan Hedlund
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Bass
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| Release | 13 Feb. 2008 |
Tomas Nilsén
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Drums
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| Country | Sweden |
Andreas Gerdin
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Keyboard
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| Similar artists | --- | ||
Machinae Supremacy is a band that I have heard about for quite a while but refrained from checking up simply because I have had the feeling that it would be crap. First of all they come from the very north of Sweden, which is an area that produces little to almost no good bands, and second of all the band is known for being very fond of old computer games and to incorporate sounds from those in their music. I thought it would be a goofy, nerdy and highly mediocre band with the usual wannabe tendencies. How very wrong I was, once again. I have to work on my prejudice towards things like this.
The band is said by themselves to be the founder of SID Metal, a recent genre of metal which uses a SID chip of the good old Commodore 64. They combine modern heavy metal and alternative rock with chiptunes and have released a considerable number of songs for free download on their site, 32 original recordings, boasting over 3 million downloads as of 2006, and still counting. They have already made their place in history by being one of the first bands to successfully embrace and utilise the internet and filesharing to gain a huge fanbase before ever having signed a record deal, received airplay or any form of sponsored promotion. They have reached out to all corners of the world, from Israel and China to the USA and Australia, and today their website has over 100,000 song downloads every month.
But fear not, oh conservative metal listener. Despite these elements I would say this is pretty ordinary metal but of a very well played kind. The SID elements are scarcely used and when they are, it is subtly done and just add a unique touch to it. I think it is actually spicing it up in a very nice way. What attracts me the most in their music is the groovy guitar riffs and the vocals, which are far from state of the art but Robert Stjärnström has a special voice which gives the music character and more than just once makes me think about Chris Bay of Freedom Call, which in this context is a fresh contrast since Machinae Supremacy's music is a bit heavier than Freedom Call's. The production is good with a very rich, crisp and juicy sound, somewhat reminicent of Pain and perhaps Theatre Of Tragedy but not at all as industrial sounding.
It is hard to pick any songs that stand out more than others since they are all above average and noone falls out of frame. They more or less follow the same pattern of some solid and catchy riffs as a steady base accompanied by catchy leads and a strong and direct chorus. That could also be seen as a disadvantage by some people who crave a lot more diversity in an album but Machinae Supremacy definitely manage to catch and keep my interest during the whole course of this album. A very good and strong album that I know for sure will spin many times more in my home and I will definitely check up on their earlier work, which counts to three previous full length albums.
See
also review of: Into
The Night World , Redeemer
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Performance
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Originality
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Production
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Vocals
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Songwriting
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7 |
8,5 |
8 |
7 |
7,5 |
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Summary
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7,5 chalices of 10 - Tommy |
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