Terrorizer

8 years ago Elenium would have sounded experimental to me. Synths syncopated against death metal riffs and abrupt rhytms, melodic vocals sneaking behind the border patrols in a country called Gruff. Those illegal immigrations have long ceased to be frowned upon, and the cross-pollination they offered is long forgotten, totally integrated into a genre. Therefore, no matter how solidly Elenium play, I can mistake their music for thin air unless, A) they introduce a grinning new asylum seeker wearing a straw skirt, a bullet belt and a horned sombrero, and/or B) thy write stunning songs and unravel riffs even the Haunted missed out on. Well, A doesn`t happen, the second part of B is missing too. There isn´t a single drop-everything-and-aaaaaargh riff to be found. Elenium´s saving grace is track 4, "Nameless - Faceless" which doesn´t offer anything different to the rest of the album. Starting like a miniature "Whereever I May Roam", it simply rocks.

6 / 10

Avi Pitchon