'Resurrection' couldn't be a more fitting title for Chimaira's latest release. After leaving Roadrunner (for what one can only guess was the same reason every other band has left), Chimaira comes full force with what is easily their strongest material to date (another thing that seems to be quite common with bands that leave Roadrunner).
The title track, which also kicks things off, is classic Chimaira with a twist. Though they have the signature Chimaira sound, they've also opted to incorporate the dual screams that are being utilized by many in extreme metal today. What manages to keep Chimaira from sounding like nothing more than a copy is that they've not changed their entire sound by incorporating such elements. They're simply adapting to the current clime of extreme metal, while maintaining their own identity.
"Pleasure In Pain" is where this album really gets going. Slightly more uptempo than a typical Chimaira song, and lyrically darker, it easily sets the tone for the rest of the album. "Worthless" has a hardcore vibe to the main riff, but slows down to a brutal groove during the chorus, with Mark Hunter showcasing some excellent brutal deathcore growls as he spews out some extremely venomous lyrics. Anders steps things up as well, with some great double kick work during the latter half of the track, and Rob Arnold finally steps away from the terrible Kerry King influenced noodly leads he was previously known for, and comes into his own with some crip, clean, worthwhile lead guitar work.
"Six" has what could easily be one of the meanest grooves on the entire album. And with the stepped up level of musicianship on this album, that's saying alot. With empowering lyrical refrains like "Only the strong survive" and "Never back down", the song easily falls into the realms of metallic hardcore heavyweights like Throwdown and Hatebreed (*The overall lyrical content is most likely based on an entirely different concept). Musically it's far removed from anything directly related to hardcore though, with a heavy middle eastern influence in the melodic guitarwork, and the crushing Pantera-esque grooves throughout.
"Killing The Beast" is the most off-kilter track on the album, with most of the lyrical content being delivered in spoken word style, excepting the chorus, which is quite possibly the best clean chorus on the entire album. "Needle" opens with a riff and drumwork reminiscent of Cannibal Corpse's "The Bleeding", only obviously nowhere near as fast, and once again, vocalist Mark Hunter continues with the use of spoken word stylings throughout the song. "Empire" closes out the album with a ton of aggression and a nasty spiraling guitar riff. Chimaira also successfully incorporate extreme black metal influences into their sound with Anders providing a more than competent blast beat, and Chris Spicuzza adding in some symphonic synth overlays ala Dimmu Borgir, only not as complex.
