Blackening, The (+DVD) - Machine Head

'The Blackening' is Machine Head's 6th studio album, and follow up to 'Through the Ashes of Empires'. As soon as you see this CD on the shelve in a music store, contained in a much more stunning cardboard sleve than the album cover shown here, and also packaged with a bonus DVD, you'll notice how elegant yet dark the package is. The silver embossed writting on the sleeve stands out, immediately glistening against the deadly black it sits against. ...
...rightly so!

Here Machine Head are truely back on form, distancing themselves from the Nu-Metal they had gradually descended into in the nineties, as with 'The Burning Red' and 'Supercharger'. With 'The Blackening' they go beyond their stunning debut 'Burn My Eyes' with possibly their heaviest most brutal album, this is a career defining moment. If you are a Metalcore/Metal or old-school Metal fan then this will really apeal.
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'The Blackening' is Machine Head's 6th studio album, and follow up to 'Through the Ashes of Empires'. As soon as you see this CD on the shelve in a music store, contained in a much more stunning cardboard sleve than the album cover shown here, and also packaged with a bonus DVD, you'll notice how elegant yet dark the package is. The silver embossed writting on the sleeve stands out, immediately glistening against the deadly black it sits against. It brings to mind Metallica's stunning self titled album, and rightly so!

Here Machine Head are truely back on form, distancing themselves from the Nu-Metal they had gradually descended into in the nineties, as with 'The Burning Red' and 'Supercharger'. With 'The Blackening' they go beyond their stunning debut 'Burn My Eyes' with possibly their heaviest most brutal album, this is a career defining moment. If you are a Metalcore/Metal or old-school Metal fan then this will really apeal.

Loaded with time signature changes, fantastic riffs, technical solo's and twin guitar harmonies 'The Blackening' reminds me of when I had first heard Metallica's 'Master Of Puppets'. It opens up with classical clean guitaring like that at the start of 'Battery' (By Metallica, and also a bonus track in this package). Then tears into a brutal thundering riff with galloping drums and Rob Flynns most visceral vocal performance since 'Burn My Eyes'. All this in the first track 'Clenching the Fists of Dissent', at 5 minutes and 45 seconds the whole band errupts into a dazling guitar solo over vicious riffing, and a blasting drumset, you can't fail to headbang or Air Guitar. by 10 minutes this track is still charging on a great riff. What an opening statement!!!!!

'Beautiful Mourning' Pounds in with a driving riff and Hardcore shouting from Rob, but every now and then perfect melodies and harmony push their way between the brutality, with Rob harmonising with his great set of lungs, gone are the days of shoddy lyrics and the meaningless ploddy riffs that filled 'Supercharger'.

'Aesthetics of Hate', pounds its way into the atmosphere exploding and charging like a raging bull hell bent on destruction. A song about a negative document written about the late "Dimebag" Daryl of 'Pantera' fame, it is one of the best songs on this CD. This song creates one hell of a mosh pit, and dominates in its live form.

'Now I Lay Thee Down' is a melodic mid-tempo stomper, with some great singing from Rob and excellent guitar riffs. The harmoines continue throughout with a great guitar solo towards the end of the song.

'Slanderous' breaks the glass and releases the hammer (Not MC Hammer), with its driving riffs and stompy parts. It has a awesome old-school guitar solo with bags of dual guitar harmonies. Brilliant track but one of the weaker moments here.

With the track 'Halo', I was expecting to hear the theme tune from the First Person Shooter smash hit XBox game. Instead we get the classic Machine Head sound from 'Burn My Eyes' with a snaking riff coupled with barked lyrics. There is a beautiful chorus which fits perfectly with the heaviest moments on here, as Rob sings "Halo over our demise, following a God so blind..." with elegance (But not in a lady-like way). Another great technical guitar solo screams out to compliment this stunner and drive the song forwards with a miliatry march.

'Wolves' this is my favourite track on this CD just because it is sooooo brutal. The riff is utterly tormented, just as you'd expect from these guys with a bit of a Killswitch esque guitar lick rolling off some of the riffs. Awesome, awesome stuff. The time signature changes and the riffs go a different direction, but the track remains insane to the core!
A galloping segment breaks in 3/4 of the way through with an intense riff that rolls into a furious guitar solo that rival's anything i've heard.

'A Farewell To Arms' closes the main album (9th track is a bonus to this package), it begins slowy building and building, until around three minutes when a slow paced riff batters in. Rob retains his earlier vocal harmonies here, this track is similar to 'Halo'. At 6 minutes 20 seconds a great riff comes into the mix that also builds, breaks down, then re-ignites. The best solo on the album almost finishes things up before a skitish riff change and mad pace floors the rest of the song, we're in full-drive 'Machine Head' style. Things gradually slow down with Rob signing the last dying notes as a screaming guitar fades behind. What an album.

It's not over yet though as the classical intro to 'Battery' originally by Metallica begins to play, Ohh Yeah, here we go!!! This is the best cover of a Metallica song I've ever heard. It's very raw and aggressive, but retains everything that the original had without dropping a single note from the masters. Now this is how to end such a stunning album, and it's an essential track that shouldn't be missed. Never overlook this package if you haven't got the Metallica cover, your missing out!!!!

Now onto the DVD, and the package itself. The content on the DVD is ok, there is a documentary into the making of the album that is quite interesting and a 2006 tour documentary that unfortunately doesn't feature enough live footage. Still it's a bonus and adds to the already fantastic CD I'm holding right now. The lyrics are reproduced in the booklet with thanks from each band member, and a few black and white photos of the band. Under the DVD are a few notes on the extra track and the DVD's content is your unsure on anything.

Tracklisting for 'The Blackening' (Cardboard sleeve +Bonus DVD) as follows-

1. Clenching The Fists Of Dissent
2. Beautiful Mourning
3. Aesthetics Of Hate
4. Now I Lay Thee Down
5. Slanderous
6. Halo
7. Wolves
8. A Farewell To Arms
9. Battery (Metallica Cover)*

*Bonus Track

I highly recommend this album. Every aspect is great, Machine Head have created a modern masterpiece here that is new and fresh, while invigorating old School Heavy Metal. A welcome return to form for the band, and an essential purchase for diehard fans! 

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