Individual Thought Patterns

The fall of great artists can be attributed to many things; fame, superfluous changes of direction, stagnation and populist brainwashing to name a few obvious selections. Yet, these are irrelevant, as they are merely symptoms, not causes. In every case a destructive aphrodisiac, encased in a neat phial, is administered with a sharp injection into the surface of the mind. Its victims are many, few are seen to escape its shocking and hideous effects. Its name is passivity.

Death used to be a force to be reckoned with, taking to society with a hammer carved out of precise song writing, forever inventive, yet steadfast in thematic coherence. But, on “Individual Thought Patterns”, many things changed, the most noticeable is the peregrination from Death Metal to an aesthetic based largely around the “melodic” inclination that was frequented by Traditional Metal bands in the 70s and 80s. With more emphasis on tempo than those aforementioned contemporaries, this is Speed Metal, yet dressed up in a pretty pink costume and paraded before us like a ballerina, minus the grace and beauty.

As mentioned, Speed Metal is the predominate focus of the songs, but the run-of-the-mill composition lacks the intensity and spirit found in past greats such as Coroner, Cacophony and Judas Priest. It comes off as a hotchpotch of ideas held together with weak glue by choruses, palm-muted tremolo and a selection of misused power chords. The repetition of, then the transience of “technical” riffs marred with showy polyrhythmic frolicking dominates, as songs pass in a blur, nothing of memorable value to note. Sure, every now and then an interesting riff arrives, but these are useless when muddled with a myriad of utter mediocrity. The song writing is further taken adrift by a fascination with the incorporating of needless soloing wherever possible, as if we need to know that these musicians are “talented.”

As a further hindrance is the production, which is dry-throughout, giving an artificial feel, almost akin to plastic. To suggest that it is as accessible as pop-rock bands would not be too far off the mark. This really does make obvious that the majority of the work presented here is of a similar feel, despite efforts to “spice” things up with an out of place clean acoustic introduction, which adds to the volatility of the album through more incoherence. Also absence is any sense of melody, something that is extremely important to song writing. Sure, there is melody here, but it distracts from the overall flow of the songs, never tying sections together in harmonious flow.

The drummer and bassist also try to do their bit, but enhanced musicality never solved problems that are based around spirit and drive, or in this case a lack of. The drumbeats are impressive, at least to those who adore pretentious “technical” displays, mainly over-drummed, destroying any chance of feeling with impracticability. The situation is likewise in relation to the bassist, as he meanders off into his own little world.

Such measures equate to the emittance of a gregarious aura that one may find at jam session, in this case helping preach the acceptance of all-accepting egalitarian values in accordance with the “philosophical” lyrics. Part of the problem seems to be Death’s consistent flux of line-up changes; putting together a group of super-talented musicians rarely makes a “super-band.”

If you like music that is loosely based around the concept of writing a song, more for entertainment purposes instead of aiming to achieve artistic worth, then this may be a CD for you. As a whole, this is little more than a promiscuous acceptance of the Judeo-Christian modernity that holds society in a deadlock as we speak, containing music that merely occupies space, instead of filling it with meaning.