2008 Woodie Awards
Avoid this death metal Virus like the plague
Lloyd Nelson
Issue date: 9/22/05 Section: Arts and Entertainment
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When lead singer Peter Tägtgren formed the Swedish band-which also features guitarist Jonas Österberg, bassist Mikael Hedlund and drummer Lars Szöke-in 1990, the death metal genre was flourishing.
Tägtgren, who was inspired by bands such as Morbid Angel and Obituary, immediately became a central figure in the metal movement with the release of Fourth Dimension in 1994. Eleven years later, however, Tägtgren, as both vocalist and producer, finds himself out of ideas.
Virus begins promisingly with 16 seconds of silence. It is in this silence that Tägtgren finds himself at his most restrained-what follows is a lesson in overproduction. Tägtgren, whom Alternative Press hailed as "the Rick Rubin of Scandinavian metal," suffers the same shortcomings as Rubin (who has produced acts varying from Johnny Cash to Jay-Z). Rubin is infamous for his glossy production, which focuses more on pomposity than it does on songs. Tägtgren has stolen a page from Rubin's playbook, and the album suffers greatly.
The first track, "Warpath," wastes Tägtgren's tortured howl under fuzzy guitars and blaring drums. He seems more interested in the production of music than he is in the actual creation of a song. This makes each track feel synthetic and empty.
"Blooddrench," a guitar-heavy track that feels like a punch in the mouth, loses its way about 30 seconds in as Tägtgren trades in his growl for low whimpers. Furthermore, "Let The Knife Do The Talking" fails to amount to anything except a clever title.
While its bombastic mixing may bog down the album, there are some bright moments. The solo in "Scrutinized" by Gary Holt of the band Exodus is ear-splitting rock-and-roll, and the gloomy march of "Incised Before I've Ceased" suggests that Tägtgren is willing to grow beyond his valiant death instinct and become something more. Sadly, the good moments are too far between, like sparks of brilliance in a dark muddled effort.
What makes Virus even more frustrating is the unfulfilled potential of Tägtgren. He has always been on the cusp of greatness, whether it was 1997's Final Chapter or 2000's Into The Abyss.
On Virus, Tägtgren finds himself in the land of mediocrity, simply rehashing old ideas in old ways. He is a self-proclaimed insomniac, but he may be able to get some rest knowing that his new album will send metal fans off to Never-Neverland.