The Evil in Good

There are other bands than Mace, mixing punk and crossover – my personal favourite being English Dogs. I have however not come across another band doing it with so much anarchistic aggression. Of course, it could be argued whether it’s a good thing or not. Mace’s version of it is pretty much a constant onslaught of drums accompanied by bulldozer guitar chords. Sadly the punk shows itself here – while the guitars are aggressive and fast they just never prove to be anything more than the sonic blur you get by repeating the same chord over and over again with too much distortion. Of course that was fairly exaggerated, but anyone expecting thrash guitar heroes will be disappointed.

As what I have understood there are a more melodic vibe on this album than its predecessors, but it really only shows in the end of some songs when a perfectly melodic, instrumental part turns up like a clown from a box. Then the punk/crossover comes along again and my ears are seeking for insulation. Not that the music isn’t so bad, if punkish thrash/crossover appeals to you, but the vocalist is. He sure sounds aggressive, thus accompanying the music but the screams are delivered like bullets from an Uzi, making no sense. It’s cute for starters, the anarchistic feeling, his insubstantial vocals, the crazy solos and the speedy drumming that is pretty much running the show. But Mace goes on beyond the point of compensation and after a song or two I switch album.