Elements
Mind Control
As a metal head I was really pleased that the Italian melodic death metal band Mind Control found our platform and submitted their newest album 'Elements' for review. Mind Control hasn't released a record in nine years, so you could see this album as a comeback.
The atmospheric start of the album with the title song Elements, that turns into a melodic death metal song about halfway through the song, left me wanting more.
Well, more is what I got when I went over to the second song on their album: Rage. With a guitar riff that reminds me of the old days of In Flames, they got my definite attention. The song sounds strong and alternates between clean and heavy bits.
The third album track, Flames, features a strong guitar intro. An interesting vocal arrangement and changing rhythms. Effluent may be the most progressive track so far on the album and is certainly worth a listen.
Wind is the most listened-to track at the point of writing this review. It has a very nice bridge/solo section that really captivates the listener. To be completely honest, I don't feel like this is the most interesting track on the album, but the general public seems to disagree!
Onwards to Storm: a more melodic, laid back intro leads into the heavier part of the song, to end into an atmospheric electronic feel as it leads to the seventh track on the album: Air. The transition between these two songs is actually really clever and well executed.
Air is one of those tracks that feel more progressive to begin with, which is something I can really appreciate. Then there's a section that is pure death metal, with some interesting guitar parts in between. The song ends on a high and then suddenly transitions into Tempest, which is more of an intermezzo than a song.
It flows nicely into Hurricane, where the melodic riff immediately caught my attention. The guitar work on the album is splendid in general and this song is no exception. The outro of the song has once again a more electronic feel, which feels a bit "out there" and is not necessarily a decision I understand.
The River is another strong song that starts out pretty clean with the stunning vocals of Stefania Salladini and then turns heavier. This song comes across really solid because of the short silences they utilize to give the song a more interesting flow. If anything, you might call this a death metal ballad.
Ether, the eleventh track on the album, makes interesting use of a low note in the intro. You almost feel the overtone, but it isn't actually there. The rest of the song doesn't really do it for me, even though it's well executed as a whole.
Going into Maelstrom, the tempo has gone up significantly. It must be a fight to play this live! Also, the tempo changes rapidly during the song which makes it very interesting to listen to. Then there's the bridge section that feels very much like a story being told. In short, a captivating song.
The final song, Blame, has slightly different vocals. Where the main heavy vocal on the album is more of a scream, this is more like a grunt. The song feels different on all levels, almost as if it had been written at a different time than the other songs. Don't get me wrong, it's a solid song, but it's different from whatever you would expect based on the rest of the album.
The entire album is incredibly cool. The guitars are splendid, the drums are tight, the vocals are impressive and the production as a whole is great. The album shows some great musicianship and is a must-listen for anyone who's into (melodic) death metal. Some of the songs, such as Effluent, have a little progressive edge that makes the album even more interesting.
In other words, I loved listening to Elements by Mind Control and I'm pretty sure I'm going to be listening to it more often.
