By Matt Lewis

It’s been awhile since the band Mnemic and I have crossed paths. Their debut album Mechanical Spin Phenomena was in my regular rotation for a few months back in 2005. It was heavy, catchy and in a genre not completely flooded with copy cats. Nowadays this genre is becoming a dime a dozen with the Threat Signals and Mnemics and now Fear Factory back to take the crown. The Audio Injected Soul, their follow up to Spin, didn’t really catch my attention and since then I haven’t bothered to listen to anything since. Then the oppurtunity to listen to the band’s new album Sons of the System came up and knowing that ex-Scarve vocalist Guillaume Bideau was now involved I said what the hell.

The new album is once again being produced by Tue Madsen, who worked on the band’s first two efforts. There is nothing wrong with the production, everything is loud, heavy and crystal clear. Tue did a great job on that end. The problems I have with this record can be summed up in a few simple words: I’ve heard this all before. There is nothing new, complex or interesting about this record. Innovative, cutting edge, ingenious, orginiative and avant-garde are all synonyms to new that this record has nothing of. That being said, it is heavy and has some good grooves, it gets heavy at the right moments, and just when you’ve had enough of the clean melodies it gets back to the headbanging. Anyone who listens to the record will realize what its trying to accomplish on first listen. However, the album is a tad long for this genre and at almost 50 minutes it gets formulaic. As a side note song number five on the record “Climbing towards the Stars” is the worst song I’ve heard in a while. Korn eat your 1994 hearts out.

Some of you will come back and listen to this album again and some won’t. It is Fear Factory worship and there is nothing wrong with that. If you like Fear Factory this will distract you for awhile with a little more melody then Fear Factory. Then you will go out and listen to the new Fear Factory.

(Nuclear Blast)

Rating: 6.0