Same technique for Five Finger Death Punch.
Having just marked over twenty years in the business, the American band led by Zoltán Báthory (guitar, ex-U.P.O.), Ivan Moody (vocals, ex-Motograter), Chris Kael (bass), Charlie Engen (drums), and Andy James (guitar, ex-Sacred Mother Tongue, ex-Fields of the Nephilim) is releasing its tenth album, Legacy, via Better Noise Music.
The title track Legacy opens the album, blending ultra-effective, choppy riffing purely rooted in Groove Metal with a touch of intricate harmonics, as well as the powerful and instantly recognizable voice of Mr. Moody, who at times delivers perfectly controlled clean vocals to complement his screams. The track flows quite well, as does De Oppresso Liber, which immediately follows and instantly establishes itself as a future live anthem, even featuring a break where pre-recorded backing vocals and handclaps encourage the audience to join in. Then Eye Of The Storm offers a moment of respite with its minimalist intro before the onslaught begins. The track is striking only for its raw power, barely disrupted by a more piercing solo, but the atmosphere shifts radically with Nails in the Coffin, a much darker and more unsettling composition that builds a tragic tone interspersed with waves of aggression to reinforce its heavy message. In Time serves as the album’s ballad, whether through its prominent clean sound or the lyrics that bring a glimmer of hope amid all this darkness, but the energy and furious riffs return on Unscathed, which reignites the urge to let loose while screaming the choruses at the top of your lungs. It’ll be easy to bang your head to the heavy mosh part, just as it is to the catchy Joke’s on Me, which follows right on its heels and gives us everything we love about 5FDP, and even the brief breaks heighten the impact of the distortion before giving way to the gentleness of Everybody Lies, the album’s second ballad, where the vocalist sweeps us along as he pours out his heart. We move on to Shelter, a track that offers a fairly groovy mid-tempo groove with relatively majestic choruses, though with a few nods in the lyrics, then Scapegoat delivers the final blow with aggressive rhythm work and that same rebellious attitude from the quintet, which has rediscovered its former rage.
Five Finger Death Punch continues on its path, playing in ever-larger venues, but it’s clear that while the band likes to diversify its approach, it also knows how to use Legacy as an anchor to the past. The upcoming live shows are already shaping up to be epic!
75/100