Melodic death metal is often maligned these days but nevertheless always feels as if it could just be on the cusp of greatness. Like a surge of power metal exuberance meets death metal’s fearsome intensity and wizardry. What could possibly go wrong? Well often quite a lot as it happens. Even if the wizardry is there the depth and intensity is so often lacking. Few and far between are the shining examples of melodic death metal perfection. But, wherever they are to be found, it seems that Fractal Gates has managed to find inspiration from somewhere. Beyond The Self toys with all the grand ideas that made this genre so compelling in the first place. Standing at the edge of the great abyss gleefully contemplating the possibilities. As though the past two decades had just been a pin prick in the void that features so invitingly on the front cover of the release.
This is the second album from these French neo-traditionalists since 2009’s Altered State Of Consciousness and things have moved on (mixing, mastering and guest vocals were done by Dan Swanö and Sotiris Vayenas from Septic Flesh also appears). The execution is cleaner and less painless although there are some eccentricities there that might jar with the purists. On that subject, the vocals are worth a mention with some excellent death metal growling and then some rarely used but very cool rock-style vocals. Mighty Wings being the best example of this and a track that really grew on me even if the soaring chorus is slightly cheesy (it’s actually a Cheap Trick cover and comes across as a little over the top here – not that I’m complaining).
Track one proper (the first track is actually one of several otherworldly intervals) begins with an Amon Amarth-like riff and is a little predictable and firmly representative of the genre. The next track brings me on to the more appropriate, comparison. Dark Tranquillity has been the progenitor of many a melo-death mimic over the years and must surely, with all their highs and lows, provide us with some sort of benchmark for the genre. On that measure Fractal Gates manages to exonerate itself from mere mimicry and into something more respectable. The first few tracks don’t really offer anything much new. But, once we have all the staples out of the way, we get well and truly into stride with the more and more tasty hooks and riffs that are just novel enough to make this worthy of attention. From Timelessness onwards the album really begins to grow and the final four tracks really left me thinking, after a slow start, this band have actually got their hooks in to their prey. Consider me converted.
Whether those glimmers of light shining across the void would hold the gaze of anyone outside the melodic death metal scene is open to question (I’m hardly an obsessive but definitely a sympathiser). This is hardly revolutionary but a blast all the same and at least as good as some of the work produced by those now considered stalwarts of the scene .
(7.5/10 Reverend Darkstanley)
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