01. Clenching the Fists of Dissent
02. Beautiful Mourning
03. Aesthetics of Hate
04. Now I Lay Thee Down
05. Slanderous
06. Halo
07. Wolves
08. A Farewell to Arms

Machine Head have returned with fists full of fury on their sixth studio album, 'The Blackening'. With all the pre-release hype this album had, it's great to finally hear an album that has actually lived up to it and then some.

Machine Head vocalist Rob Flynn stated early on that he wanted to write the 'Master Of Puppets' for this generation, and though in the eyes of most that may have come off as a pretty bold statement, 'The Blackening' is more than worthy of such a title. The albums monstrous ten and a half minute opener "Clenching The Fists Of Dissent" comes in with a hauntingly beautiful guitar intro that leads right into a barrage of extremely savage modern thrash riffing, numerous time changes, and some of the most intense lead trade offs ever.

"Beautiful Mourning" opens with a righteously angry "FUCK YOU ALL!", and is without a doubt the best possible line from Rob and co. to all their former and current detractors. The overall sound of the song is classic Machine Head, though unlike other bands who maintain a "classic" sound from album to album, Machine Head easily avoids sounding dated with the level of technicality and aggression contained therein.

"Aesthetics Of Hate" is a full on thrash attack, with venomous lyrical content that was written in response to a demeaning article that was posted online regarding the death of late guitar legend Dimebag Darrell Abbott. "Slanderous" is another brutal track with a snaking opening riff leading right into a wicked dual melodic lead before the song kicks into high gear. Lyrically it leans on the more personal side for Flynn, though it's generalized enough to where the majority of the metal community can and likely will relate.

"Now I Lay Thee Down", while being one of the album's slower track is by no means any less heavy than the rest of the album. It does contain a beautiful soaring chorus, brutal chugging riffs, and Adam Duce rippin some sick basslines. It's basically Machine Head's "anger ballad." Rounding out the album are "Halo", which is a lyrical attack on the self righteous right wing conservatives and their supremist agendas, and album closers "Wolves" and "A Farewell To Arms", the latter being the perfect closer as it comes from a slightly different angle than "Clenching..." in regards to the current state of politics and the war.

With metal/metalcore's current so called genre leaders taking things in a more mid-tempo, toned down radio/MTV friendly direction, while others attempted to create 'throwback' thrash albums, now is the perfect time for an album like 'The Blackening'. An album of truly classic Bay Area thrash with a modern edge to it that's been long overdue. An album that can show the current and next generation of metalheads exactly where American Metalcore and Swedish Melodic Death Metal's thrash influence came from, while at the same time showing the current crop of so called metal bands exactly how it SHOULD be done.

With 'The Blackening', Machine Head have finally managed to put out the album of their career. Not since the now classic 'Burn My Eyes' has the band sounded this angry, energetic, raw and unrelenting. Call it Machine Head's version of 'Master of Puppets', or whatever you prefer. At the end of the day, with 'The Blackening', Machine Head have crafted nothing short of a masterpiece.