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Coroner > Mental Vortex > Reviews > StainedClass95
Coroner - Mental Vortex

Longer - 84%

StainedClass95, July 25th, 2014

This is Coroner's fourth album, Mental Vortex This is not as great as No More Color, but the quality isn't drastically lower. This album reminds me of Into the Pandemonium. It's not as good as the previous few, it's very much weirder, but the quality of the stronger songs is definitely there.

The song structure on this album is more drawn out than before. These songs are a couple of minutes longer overall than they had been on the earlier albums. Part of this is that they are slower. I suspect that there was an interest in making this album heavier, as there is a bit more of an early groove vibe from this than from any of their early albums. I imagine that this is an influence from Metallica more than anything. Many bands were influenced by Master and Justice to slow down some of their songs. This strikes me as more of the latter, with the stretched out songs and colder vibe.

The vocals on this album are as normal. They have a distinct Warrior-flavoring, which works for him. His lyrics also have that flavor to them. They're very esoteric and even disconcerting at times. On Metamorphosis, there are some weird whale sounds in the intro that are legitimately creepy, and then it follows into some freaky Mr. Limpet lyrics. His bass-playing is by far the superior aspect of his contribution. He does have some good bass lines on this album, and apparently he does it all with his fingers. For some, this is more difficult, but for others, this can be easier. I do know it usually takes a little more concentration than playing with a pick.

The guitar playing isn't as enjoyable as usual. He doesn't shred as often, and he also isn't shining more than usual in any other areas. The longer composition approach works for many guitarists, but I think Tommy definitely worked better with shorter numbers with shred solos. The riffs here are a little odd for him. I would actually liken much of the playing here to Killing Technology. The difference here is that where Piggy used his energetic weirdness to his advantage, Tommy is more cutting himself off at the knees by not bringing his technique to bear. A few songs do work really well in this format. I couldn't imagine Son of Lilith being played faster or differently.

Son Of Lilith, Semtex Revolution, and About Life are great songs. These three would be on an ideal Coroner mix tape. The rest are mostly above-average, except the Beatles cover. I don't get Coroner's desire to end their albums with bizarre 60's covers. All in all, I believe my rating is a fair indication of what to expect. This probably won't be anyone's favorite, but it would be a reasonable addition to a collection. If you've ever wanted a mixture of Voivod and Celtic Frost with an And Justice feel, then you'll be thrilled, and I would more generally recommend this to fans of thrash, heavy, and maybe prog metal.