Cynic were the kings of progressive/technical death metal back in the day. Their new album however was a massive departure from their old style.
So what do you think of their new style, is it a welcome change or not?
So give your oppinions, but don't just album bash, explain why you prefer one album to the other.

No doubt Focus, because there even no need explain why,

Traced In Air still stands as one of the worst records I've ever heard. Was never a raging fan of Focus but it was a decent album nonetheless.

Written by [user id=4365] on 09.06.2010 at 15:44

Traced In Air still stands as one of the worst records I've ever heard.

I was starting to think I was the only one.
But I do LOVE Focus,

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 09.06.2010 at 15:47

Written by [user id=4365] on 09.06.2010 at 15:44

Traced In Air still stands as one of the worst records I've ever heard.

I was starting to think I was the only one.
But I do LOVE Focus,

There were many "wtf?!" moments when I saw all the 9's and 10's pop up in metal publications.

Traced in Air wasn't that bad, but Focus is definitely far superior.

Written by [user id=4365] on 09.06.2010 at 15:49

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 09.06.2010 at 15:47

Written by [user id=4365] on 09.06.2010 at 15:44

Traced In Air still stands as one of the worst records I've ever heard.

I was starting to think I was the only one.
But I do LOVE Focus,

There were many "wtf?!" moments when I saw all the 9's and 10's pop up in metal publications.

I was baffled by all thse marks as well. Traced In Air is most probably the worst come-back album EVER, even worse than Nuclear Assault's.

Written by [user id=4365] on 09.06.2010 at 15:44

Traced In Air still stands as one of the worst records I've ever heard. Was never a raging fan of Focus but it was a decent album nonetheless.

Btw if you want to listen to somethign even worse than listen to Cynic's Re-Traced. Now THAT truly is abysmal

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 09.06.2010 at 15:52

Written by [user id=4365] on 09.06.2010 at 15:44

Traced In Air still stands as one of the worst records I've ever heard. Was never a raging fan of Focus but it was a decent album nonetheless.

Btw if you want to listen to somethign even worse than listen to Cynic's Re-Traced. Now THAT truly is abysmal

I actually considered that not too long ago but saw the comments to it and thought it best not to. I agree, worst comeback ever. It must have sucked big time for the die-hard fans of Focus. I had no real expectations and was still offended by it.

Written by [user id=4365] on 09.06.2010 at 15:57

I agree, worst comeback ever. It must have sucked big time for the die-hard fans of Focus. I had no real expectations and was still offended by it.

Well, most die-hard fans actually seemed to love Traced In Air. I am one of the very very very very few die-hard fans that was utterly disappointed by it and felt as if his heart was ripped out, cooked, and hung to dry on his back.

Traced in Air is pretty much un-listenable for me, I couldn't believe how wrong they went with the vocal sound this time around. I must admit though that I think Pestilence's comeback was slightly worse...

I thought traced in air was ok. the vocal performance sucked, but there was still teh experimentation and technicality they were known for. It wasn't a bad album, but compared to focus, it wasnt great either.
But then again, trying to come back after focus would be damn hard. I was just really glad to hear from them again.
And unknown guest has one of the most awesome guitar licks ever.

Traced in Air is pretty horrible, haven't listened to Focus in ages but I remember liking it, hence voted for that.

Focus would be my choice. But I do like Traced in Air, maybe it's because I actually don't hate the vocals. Don't know, it seems to have thrown some people off.

But Focus was their masterpiece and it was a very influential album as well.

I, on the contrary, didn't like Cynic untill Traced In Air. I just can't stand the vox on Focus and I found its heavy parts and solos quite bland. But Traced In Air caught me immediately- still, the processed vox aren't very great either, but tolerable. What I find as the biggest advantage of TIA over Focus is that its music seems much more expressive, experimental, and my I say, stimulating.