Band:	Fear Factory
Album:	Mechanize
Style:	Industrial metal
Release date:	February 05, 2010
A review by:	Baz Anderson

01. Mechanize
02. Industrial Discipline
03. Fear Campaign
04. Powershifter
05. Christploitation
06. Oxidizer
07. Controlled Demolition
08. Designing The Enemy
09. Metallic Division
10. Final Exit
11. Crash Test [re-recorded] [digipak bonus]

It wasn't long ago Fear Factory were claiming that "the soul of this machine has improved", following the departure of founding member, axe-man Dino. A questionable album and a legal case later, and Mechanize appears to be the band's seventh and latest full-length. Raymond and Christian do not feature on this album, Dino is back with his multiple-string guitar for the first time since Digimortal. For the first time ever the band also sees a new drummer, going by that familiar name of Gene Hoglan.

There's no question about it that when you hear Dino's signature guitar sound along with Burton's distinctive vocals, you wonder why the two were ever separated. Mechanize sounds fresh, modern, contemporary and it will knock you sideways. Fear Factory has regenerated and updated to the next version.

Performance-wise, this is probably the best the band have ever been. Burton is back on form delivering his roars and clean vocals as good as he ever has, only Dino's guitar has this unreal sound, and Gene blasts out one of his best performances with a fair few blastbeats and amazing control of the kick drums as he outclasses Raymond's past performances with Raymond's own style. Fear Factory have never sounded so extreme and tight, Mechanize is a true professional's performance.

It might sound ideal to have Fear Factory back with an album of frantic, industrial-tinged death metal, but the opportunity cost of the extremity seems to be character. Last song on the album "Final Exit" is the only display of character on the album, and by Fear Factory's standards this song is simply divine. A hint of condemned melody in the clean vocal chorus and a slight dampening of pace makes all the difference.

By no means is the half-hour punishing crush of album beforehand un-enjoyable. Although there may appear to be just one tiny hard-to-put-the-finger-on element still missing, this is the best Fear Factory have been since Obsolete, or even Demanufacture. For the first time since Digimortal, the band sound once again part of the modern time they are a part of. Mechanize is an enormously impressive present-day album that will please fans and casual listeners to no end. Fear Factory are back and mean business.