Band:	Edge Of Sanity
Album:	Infernal
Style:	Progressive death metal
Release date:	February 05, 1997
Guest review by:	deadone

01. Hell Is Where The Heart Is
02. Helter Skelter
03. 15:36
04. The Bleakness Of It All
05. Damned (By The Damned)
06. Forever Together Forever
07. Losing Myself
08. Hollow
09. Inferno
10. Burn The Sun
11. The Last Song

There would be few albums that one could describe as more schizophrenic than Edge Of Sanity's Infernal. Not schizophrenic as in lots of different influences ala Atheist or demented sound ala Meshuggah but rather schizophrenic as in a band tearing itself apart due to irreconcilable differences.

Indeed by 1997, there was a major conflict waging as to the future of the band between vocalist Dan Swano and guitarist Andreas "Dread" Axelsson. The rest of the band appeared to side with Axelsson with only drummer Benny Larsson playing on all tracks.

The result is a very inconsistent album in terms of style and quality. In some ways it seems like two separate EPs from two different bands were merged together with songs scattered in random order.

The Swano songs are generally mellower and more progressive in that they tend to incorporate other styles. Unfortunately they are not the better songs and many of the progressive elements seem forced or pointless. It almost seems as if Swano was trying to shoehorn the style pioneered on his Nightingale project into Edge Of Sanity. Ultimately the results are somewhat unsatisfactory as they clash with the Axelsson songs.

On the other side the Axelsson and Co. side features more straight forward melodic Death Metal numbers and is a sign of things to come on follow up album Cryptic. However the song writing is a lot weaker than either Cryptic or phenomenal Purgatory Afterglow.

There are some good songs such as Swano's "Hell Is Where The Heart Is" but overall the album is too inconsistent to be enjoyable. The musicianship is as always excellent. Perhaps the album is best enjoyed as single songs scattered in a random playlist.

Ultimately Infernal reveals a band that was a spent force and who probably should have called it quits after the majestic Crimson. Instead we are left with an unsatisfactory end to the Swano-Axelsson partnership that tarnishes the reputation of one of the most innovative bands in Death Metal.