It’s hard to see a new Soilwork album without feeling that you know what to expect. Not that I’m complaining, as I have all 11 albums they’ve released plus other bits. I expect melody, I expect aggression, I expect a degree of bombast and songs with an anthemic quality. The style switched to something more catchy quite early on, but otherwise Soilwork haven’t thus far deviated from the trademark sound, yet speaking from a personal point of view each album has brought new delights. I was grateful to have no profound explanation for the rationale behind this new album. Whilst I understand and appreciate that a bit of information is useful, especially on style, I’m very happy not to have it, as it either gets ignored or clouds the listening. Anyway, no such worries here.
Just like concerts start dramatically, so does the title track which opens the album. But they were never going to catch me out. Formalities over, we’re into rapid melodic, smooth, commercially directed metal with a hooky chorus, an irrepressible beat and Strid’s mix of aggressive and clean vocals. Ah, it’s Soilwork. Of course it’s a track you can bounce along to. “Nous sommes la guerre” is more measured, and marked by subtle keyboard touches and sharp drum work. The song inevitably rises out of the earth from being a pure rock song to expand with tension and delight us with a goose-bumping chorus and a guitar solo. Soilwork = action. “Hold my fire, would you arise and meet me where the sparks ignite? Nothing’s new., it’s just the fear that something’s coming’s after you” … gosh, I was singing along in the comfort of my own home after the first listen. “Electric Again” is like a compendium of Soilwork but no less enjoyable – Strid’s clean vocals are ethereal. The song is heavy, keyboard-driven and that chorus is like a slice of heaven. My head moved again to the opening of “Valleys of Gloam” before the band take off in a different melodic direction before returning all the while to that running stream of melody which they left in our psyche. It sounds simple but these songs are carefully crafted as well as being mobile monsters of melody and catchiness. “Is It In Your Darkness” pays homage to the band early thrashiness but with the now inevitable clean chorus that we have come to expect. The melodic riff of “Vultures” leads the way while Strid provides the expanse, the aggression and the sing-a-long chorus. The groove is deep, the song is full of layers and musical variety, and the audience is singing along. Time for a little guitar interlude.
Melodic hostilities resume with the solid “Death, I Hear You Calling”. Again, song structure is at a premium. The groove from the guitar leads the way, and it all builds up to a succession of clean choruses which inevitably invade our mind. Mid-way as the drum continues to pound it takes off into another wondrous direction. Death may be calling but with this great song we’re marching relentlessly towards it through a fog of anthemic melody. Great, great song. To be fair, I’m not hearing any bad songs on this album. We return to the thunderous world of “The Godless Universe”. Strid is never to be outdone and dazzles us by matching the hammering drums and driving guitars not only with aggression but also with ethereal vocal work. The song takes on another level at the end, rising into majestic melancholy but not for too long as we must enter the dark and thrashy world of “Dreams of Nowhere”. Strid and his instrumentalists lead the march. The chorus is stellar and another which entices us and returns for us to join in: “It ain’t your time to waste another miracle”. It may not mean anything but I’m hooked. Meanwhile the instrumentalists create shadowy worlds. After another interlude, we join the big, expansive world of “Golgata”, complete with hard riff, melodic groove, oceans of firepower, a catchy chorus and sheer metal energy. Soilwork songs are so full of life. “Golgata”.in common with many others, has all this going on at the same time. I could die happy listening to this. I shouldn’t be banging my head like this at my head but now “Harvest Spine” makes this impossible. Flowing like a river, it is a mastery of catchy heaviness. Aggression transforms into perfectly crafted brakes and diversions, and the pure silk of the chorus. Soilwork give it their all as they always do, and it’s out there to wrap us in the delights of its heavy metal melody. “On the Wings of a Goddess / Through Flaming Sheets of Rain” may be a bit of a mouthful but its heavy melodic thrash makes it easy to digest. This is the final attack. And this is the thing. Soilwork do attack almost constantly, but it’s like friendly fire because the music melts in our heads, aided by the fluidity, the power, the energy, the transformations, the variety of passages though the course of each song, the sublime musicianship and the anthemic drama and majesty of it all.
How do they do it? There is undoubtedly a Soilwork formula. The music is aggressive but easy on the ear. Some may not like it. I certainly do, and once again appreciated the life and the energy pouring out of this album as the band somehow manage to rework that formula with another collection of bright, breezy and fluent metalcore songs. “Övergivenheten” is packed with skilful musical content and there is so much to enjoy about it. I found it utterly breath-taking from beginning to end.
(9.5/10 Andrew Doherty)
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