Who has been more influential in the Melodic Death Metal scene as of late then Soilwork? Other then At The Gates and In Flames, this group is one of the bands where you simply say their name, and everyone either has an opinion, or a favorite song. Lately, the group has been going through some musical changes, taking on a more Hard Rock approach then anything, and since then the fans has been greatly divided. So, where did it all go wrong? Was it the commercial success of Natural Born Chaos after it was voted album of the year in multiple outlets? Or was the downfall the account of trying to emulate that sound again and the bashing of Figure Number Five? While this new direction isn't well accepted, it is still influencing Metal fans and many of today and tomorrow's bigger name bands.
Soilwork originally formed under the name Inferior Breed. Not much is known about this period in the band's history, though two tracks off an early demo were made available on the Figure Number Five limited edition release. It's unclear if this demo was recorded under that name though, as it could very well have been under the Soilwork monicker. Shortly after, the group signed to Listenable Records to release their debut full-length recording The Chainheart Machine, which took the Metal world by storm. This album has become a fan favorite, and one of the stronger releases by the group, but it wouldn't be until they signed with Nuclear Blast that the band would begin to grow and become the powerhouse they are today.
To this day, Soilwork has stuck with Nuclear Blast to release their material, and continued to grow in success. It wasn't until Natural Born Chaos that they would blow up in the Melodic Death Metal world. But, with the follow-up of Figure Number Five, it becomes clear that the producer of Natural Born Chaos, Devin Townsend of Stapping Young Lad, was a determining factor to the album's success, aside the band's obvious talent. It also showed that Soilwork didn't have a clear direction as far as studio recordings go, as they had produced the album themselves, and it was considered one of the low points in the band's career.
Since then, it seems the band has tried to go in varying routes, attempting to reinvent themselves. Stabbing the Drama seemed to be an album where the band tried to once again recapture their roots and the sound of Natural Born Chaos, and for the most part it was enjoyable. But, they have yet to reach the levels they did with Natural Born Chaos, and started to become a little repetitive, following a general formula that was growing int he Melodic Death Metal world. But, it didn't take long for the band to attempt to go in a completely different direction, embracing the then small but growing style of incorporating a traditional Hard Rock sound with the Melodic Death Metal approach, and to this day, this is where the band stands. Whether it's a good idea or not is based solely on those who enjoy this new approach, but here at Apoch's, there is a solid view of what albums from Soilwork are solid Melodic Death Metal, and here's all the reviews available on this site for their recordings.
Column quick jump:
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| Soilwork: The Chainheart Machine |
The Chainheart Machine marked Soilwork's second full-length venture, as well as their first attempt at a conceptual album. This album was based around the item mentioned in the title: The Chainheart Machine. It also shows some great change from the band as far as the music went, still retaining the elements that made their debut full-length Steelbath Suicide such a good album, but really focusing more on writing tighter, more atmospheric Melodic Death then anything. Considered one of the band's best works, the music here showed great potential for this group, and seemed to act as a great blueprint for future recordings.
-> Read the review here.
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| Soilwork: The Early Chapters |
The Early Chapters by Soilwork is the first EP to be released by the band, and acts simply as you generic five song EP. This release features materials that were previously released, but only to limited markets, as wel as two cover songs and the obligatory live track. For the casual fan of the band, it doesn't really seem like much, but for the devoted fans who may not have already picked up this release, it's a nice companion piece for the collection.
-> Read the review here.
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| Soilwork: Figure Number Five |
Figure Number Five is, really, where Soilwork began to change their music style. After the success of Natural Born Chaos, the band continues to meld that specific successful formula here, but inadvertantly creates an album that is heavily frowned upon, and often with good reason. The limited edition of this release, which isn't even really a limited edition as it has been in print for a good while now, does feature some nice bonus material on a second disc, but is easily one of the most hated of all CDs simply because of how this version was packaged: In a carboard slip cover that was so tight it took about an hour just to get the jewel case out itself.
-> Read the review here.
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| Soilwork: Let This River Flow |
Let This River Flow snuck under the radar for many fans of Soilwork, mostly because in the US it really was advertised as being released. This two song digital download CD Single acts as a way to prepare the fans for the band's upcoming album The Panic Broadcast, and in many ways it does. To bad it's in a greatly negative manner for many die hards who grew up with the band from the early years of their career.
-> Read the review here.
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| Soilwork: Natural Born Chaos |
Natural Born Chaos is easily one of Soilwork's most impressive albums to be released. While many will dispute this fact, there's no denying how catchy the music is, bringing the whole Melodic Death Metal scene to a new level of merging heavy, hard hitting music with soothing, sometimes beautiful melodic elements that work very well together. This was also the pivotal album in their career where they tried to duplicate their own success, only to go off into an experimental stage that produced nothing as worthwhile as the material here, as well as their previous three efforts, in essence causing the band to create their own natural born chaos.
-> Read the review here.
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| Soilwork: The Panic Broadcast |
For quite some time now, we have seen Soilwork slip farther and farther away from their earlier Melodic Death Metal roots for a more lighter sound that could be considered more radio friendly. Well, The Panic Broadcast has it's share of tracks much like the previous two efforts, and in some instances feel a bit worse. However, The Panic Broadcast, the group's eigth full-length venture since their debut in 1998 is more then just another copy and paste job while trying to mature their sound. In a sense, some of the material here marks a revisiting of the band's roots and pulls the album from the repetitive mediocrity that Soilwork had found themselves stuck in. Too bad it's really on an EP length's worth of visitation.
-> Read the review here.
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| Soilwork: Stabbing the Drama |
After the atrocity that was Figure Number Five, Soilwork bring us their latest release, Stabbing The Drama, or, as the band refers to it on some shirts and panties, S.T.D. But the question is whether or not this release will be like their last album, or if they got their shit back in order. Well, we can safely say that everything is in somewhat of an order.
-> Read the review here.
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