FEAR FACTORY - Aggression Continuum
The Bell Tolls for the Last Time
Written by: Tom Wilson - Sense Music Media
There is certainly a formula to FEAR FACTORY music. Since blowing the metal world open with their landmark 1995 album Demanufacture, the band have established a core sound and rarely deviated from it (Digimortal and Transgression notwithstanding). There aren’t any curveballs here. No U2 covers or rap collaborations. The question that has to be asked is this: is Aggression Continuum an adequate FF record, or a great one? About one-minute-thirty into opener Recode, it is clear that this is the latter. The guttural growls, the soaring clean vocals, the sparkling synths and huge orchestra surging behind the down-tuned riffage – this isn’t a band reinventing the wheel. This is a band doubling down on what made FEAR FACTORY great in the first place, and the target of endless rip-offs.
Pictured: Mike Heller, Dino Cazares + Tony Campos - FEAR FACTORY
Photo courtesy of Nuclear Blast
Aggression Continuum should make the hair stand up on the back of your neck. It’s the sound of a band in their best form in over a decade, playing to a level not seen since 2010’s Mechanize or their classic 90s albums Demanufacture and Obsolete. Whatever you think of Dino’s use of the crowdfunding process – some of which went towards the hiring of veteran producer Andy Sneap – every cent of it is on display here. The keys and synths soar. The orchestra swells. Dino’s signature typewriter riffage is surgically precise, and the groove is heavy enough to crack your skull.
FEAR FACTORY - Disruptor - Official Music Video (2021)
Disruptor may just be the biggest riff Dino has written since Edgecrusher, combining devastating weight with hyperactive bounce. In the interest of health and safety, SENSE recommends wearing a helmet while listening to it. Fuel-Injected Suicide Machine is a glorious ode to seminal Aussie actioner Mad Max – taking its name from the opening monologue of “The Night Rider”, the joyrider who is swiftly turned into a fireball by a young Mel Gibson. The band ease off the throttle for Monolith, a melodic anthem that harks back to Dog Day Sunrise and Descent. Manufactured Hope and Cognitive Dissonance are utterly pulverising, and the thunderous riffs of End of Line eventually fade into the moody synths we’ve come to expect at the end of a FEAR FACTORY record.
Pictured: Mike Heller, Tony Campos + Dino Cazares - FEAR FACTORY
Photo courtesy of Nuclear Blast
The legal woes and infighting have been well documented, so there’s no point rehashing them here. FEAR FACTORY 2021 is founding guitarist Dino Cazares, bassist Tony Campos and drummer Mike Heller. They are currently auditioning vocalists to take over from Burton C. Bell, who announced his departure several months ago, having recorded these vocals back in 2017. Whatever direction the band chooses to go in from here, one thing is clear – if this proves to be Burton’s last FF record, he can rest happy knowing that he went out on a high, because his performance here is breathtaking.
The Verdict
As a band, FEAR FACTORY have once again been “remanufactured”. Where they go from here, only they know. One thing is certain: Aggression Continuum is a stunning achievement.