Lost Society - Hell Is A State Of Mind - review
Lost Society - Hell Is A State Of Mind - review
Tracklist
01. Afterlife02. Blood Diamond
03. Synthetic
04. Is This What You Wanted
05. L'appel Du Vide
06. Kill The Light
07. No Longer Human
08. Dead People Scare Me (But The Living Make Me Sick)
09. Personal Judas
10. Hell Is A State Of Mind
A review by
omne metallum February 23, 2026
Ah, Lost Society: one of two bands who share the ignominious pleasure of having my lowest review score for an album with their 2022 release If The Sky Came Down. To say we have a history is like asking a divorced couple their opinion of their ex spouse. Still, I will wipe the slate clean and take the band's latest offering Hell Is A State Of Mind on its own merits; who knows, things may get better...
...Is what I thought until I pressed play and "Afterlife" began, at which point I had to fight the urge not to frisbee the CD out of my window within the first minute. While Hell Is A State Of Mind is thankfully an improvement, it is still one that starts off on the wrong foot in a minefield, and all too often, resembles stepping on a mine, or, of you're lucky, a bear trap instead.
Lost Society's decision to move away from thrash was a balancing act that began with 2016's Braindead, one that started off well initially before they tripped over their feet when crossing over from a groove thrash sound into metalcore. With Hell Is A State Of Mind, the band complete this transformation as they emerge as some unholy hybrid of metalcore, Amaranthe and nu metal, replete with orchestral touches that try to sound dramatic but instead leave you scratching rather than banging your head.
Indeed, this change of approach is perhaps why Elbanna tries his hand at rapping, something that will make you raise your hand to cover your face in disbelief as the aforementioned "Afterlife" and "Dead People Scare Me (But The Living Make Me Sick)" play out. It seems almost as if the band taunt listeners, asking "Is This What You Wanted" (a track that conjures Linkin Park's "Breaking The Habit" in my head): no, no it is not.
What I want is more "L'appel Du Vide", a song that makes coherent sense of these disparate, and often at odds, influences and ideas. Thankfully the band oblige further with "Personal Judas" and the closing title track, resulting in a trio of tracks that are islands of entertainment in an ocean of annoyance. They do at least balance these assorted ideas into a coherent mix, so the album has that going for it.
While the album isn't full of songs you listen to while covering your face with yourr hands and rocking back and forth in despair, it is largely just full of tracks that feel like second rate Amaranthe when they are at their worst. "Synthetic" and "Kill The Light" are tolerable, though hardly inspiring. I can hear what they are aiming for with "Blood Diamond", but the execution and songwriting leaves the song sounding like a generic album track by many other bands' standards.
Is it worth listening past "Afterlife"? Not particularly, as Hell Is A State Of Mind rarely rewards you for persevering through its awkward opening gambit; even if it does have some redeeming moments, it's nowhere near enough to salvage the rest of the wreck.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 5 |
| Songwriting: | 3 |
| Originality: | 3 |
| Production: | 7 |
Written on 23.02.2026 by
Written on 23.02.2026 by
Just because I don't care doesn't mean I'm not listening. Comments
Comments:
3
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Posts: 212  |
Posts: 212
To be honest, when I saw them live supporting for Amorphis I thought they had lots of energy and “star” quality. Not to mention, they were super skilled players! Impressive band live! But checking their discography afterwards, I soon realised how inconsistent they are . And this review gives me no hope really.
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Posts: 66  |
Posts: 66
I remember this band going from thrash to metalcore/alternative a couple of years ago... trying their latest singles was a bad decision.
---- Be more like Funriz
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Posts: 18  |
Posts: 18
I think 4.5 for this band - is absolutely biased opinion based on difference with the style they started with. Althoughit's not my type of music it's ridiculous to give them 5 for perfomance and 3 for whatever.
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