Fear Factory - Demanufacture

I sincerely believe this is one of the most overlooked albums in metal history. Now, I realise that might sound odd given the
fact that it is fairly mainstream in comparison with many of its contemporaries (Carnage, Crypt of Kerberos etc.) but these 
days, I expect that the online community is more than aware of bands of such nature - hell online, a person who had not heard
of Burzum would be laughed at, especially when they then went and referred to Cradle of Filth as innovators of "true black 
metal". As such, the perspective I take is that of the informed community, those which turn their noses up at the printed
press such as Kerrang! and the filmed press such as MTV.  

Demanufacture is industrial metal that fuses death metal brutality and aggression, with the synthetic elements of the gothic/
industrial scene to produce a "steel works" like sound.  I suspect that in the Year of Darkness, 2029, this is what the
machines which take over the planet will be listening to.  In the same manner as they wipe us out, they will be listening to
this clinically destructive album of revolt and hate.  

Drumming that sounds like a thousand terminators marching through the streets oppresses throughout Demanufacture. With drum
machine like precision Raymond Herrera blasts his way through each and every song. Compact short beats create a very rhythmic
feel to the drums inspite of their otherwise sterile sound - much the same way as Decapitated were to do years later.  This
I think is part of the brilliance and charm of the album.  Each song develops a real catchiness to it without being 
aesthetically cheap.  Guitaring features similarly sterile tone, focusing on a thick crushing riffs bringing to fruition a
rhythm that accompanies the very mechanical drums.  Bass lines aren't particularly prominant, but subtly drive the heavy 
double bass sound and thicken up the synthetic overlays that are used throughout.

Burton C Bell's vocals are also brilliant - strong and assertive but with no distinct style. They aren't death metal vocals,
although some have in the past called him a growler, but they aren't in any way clean vocals (with the exception of a few 
parts to songs such as "Dog Day Sunrise".  It's almost like hardcore, with the faggy "core" elements (so they don't sound 
whinny or generic). Songs like "Replica" and "self-Bias Resistor" scream hate and pain, with the vocal work being entirely 
flawless.  They are effectively where the emotions of the album are conveyed; while instruments are creating a brutal 
hypnosis, Bell is releasing the anger that IS Demanufacture.

Key tracks include "Replica" which is an ode to a life born of loathesome inception, "Self Bias Resistor" and "Body Hammer" 
which call us to open our eyes to realities of a disgusting harmful society and ofcourse the title track "Demanufacture" 
expressing disdain for war and the governments who provoke it:
"I've got no more goddamn regrets
I've got no more goddamn respects"


I believe this was one of the gateway albums I had into heavy metal, and I trust it was much the same for listeners of my
vintage (circa mid-90's). But I would question how many people have actually returned to this album.  Whilst I have moved
on from listening to the generic bands and or albums that I began with, Demanufacture stands the test of time. Like I said 
before, it won't even really come into it's own until 2029 if you believe the doomsday expectations of "The Terminator".
Demanufacture through it's somewhat simplistic structure and non-technical approach to heavy metal, creates an aggressive
album of thunderous proportions.  Not to be overlooked as a milestone in heavy metal history, Demanufacture 12 years on still
holds its against the best of the industrial scene, and indeed within the greater genre itself.

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