New Life Behind Closed Eyes

This sounds familiar. Prosthetic doesn't stray too far from their signing circle. Thrash bands with metalcore influences, or melodic dm with breakdowns. Not to say that I don't dig some of this. Himsa, BoBe, Beneath The Massacre, etc. are all sick bands (Himsa was the first and last heavy band I saw besides Botch). But this sounds somewhat dirivative.

There is nothing inherently wrong with this album. I had never heard of them before. I happened to be browsing while buzzed at my favorite record shop ( a fav pastime) when I noticed the cover. Anyone who hasn't picked up a metal CD purely on the cover is a fucking liar. I was intrigued and I trusted the label enough to know that at least this would be decent.

Good intro riff, check. Drums enter to backup riff making it moshworthy, check. Gruff but not dumb deathy screams, check. This album has everything I like (well, angelcorpse is the best, but everything I like in a new band), but just can't seem to write THE song for me. Many bands do it, Nasum, A Life Once Lost, Meshuggah, Napalm Death, Mayhem, etc. Some people might call it noise, but with a truely great band, I can point to at least one song that has a inherent catchiness, whether metallic (Vulture, by a life once lost, on hunter), catchy (Shadows by nasum), or just plain sick (path of the weakening, by deeds of flesh, Slit your guts, etc), and get at least a shrug of "maybe".

There just isn't a whole lot that reaches out and grabs you on this album. I think honestly the problem is with the guitarist. He is talented, but as the liner notes state, every song was written by him. Bummer. Most great bands collaborate to make their music, or at least add different dimensions. You could argue that all the guitar parts from the last 4 or 5 mayhem albums were all blasphemer, etc etc etc, but the booklet here seems to go to the extreme of excluding everyone else.

This one voice in the songwriting creates the same problem I face. I play guitar, but it seems like I get stuck in a rut. So does the guitarist. Not to say he isn't talented. It's just the IT factor that is missing.

I have listened to this album several times now in the last few days. It will stay in my occasional rotation. If the band can get together and create some twists and turns that make a more interesting listening experience, I'm fucking down man. Solid album, with time, the band can only improve. Good luck dudes.