Fear Factory - Demanufacture

 Best album by best metal band ever
I truly believe my life would be different if Fear Factory did not exist. This album along with its follower, Obsolete are my all time favorite albums. I would say they are the soundtracks of my life because I have listened to them probably a couple thousand times each, I just can't get tired of them. If you like metal you reaaally have to have Fear Factory albums in your collection, they are truly masterpieces of metal, beautiful and full of hatred at the same time. No words can make justice to this music. November 19, 2007

 Way better than I anticipated!
As a musician, I can't help but praise a band that has incredible musical talent. This band is so technichal and talented that the music sounds almost imopossible to actually make!!! Powerful ndustrial Metal combined with speedy death metal technicality. Total perfection!!!! This band holds an obvious influence from bands like Ministry, while never sounding like rip off artist or fakers of any kind. Ironnicly, it seems that only the most seasoned and ecclectic music listeners are up to bar on this great album. Nothing short of victory for this well respected and non a** kissing scenester band!! Real metal! Real aggression!!! Real talent!!! July 12, 2007

 Fear Factory's Second Best!
That's right, I may be one of the few, if not the only one to not regard this album as FF's best. Why? Because, although all songs rule on this one, and all of them are equally great, they are also very alike, almost like the same song repeated many times over. Oh, don't get me wrong, "Demanufacture" had only one prevailing rival for the CD of 1995: Death's "Symbolic". Fear Factory's barely second offering remains a surprisingly mature and original effort, though it is not too hard to point out their influences: Sepultura (BIG TIME),Machine Head, Pantera, Type O'Negative, Megadeth and Life of Agony. But for all these inspirations, "Demanufacture" was and continues to be one of the most profoundly influential albums for metal music, especially the development of modern metalcore. I would say, without this CD, metalcore would not exist. Still, it is not Fear Factory's best work, although, admittedly it's really close. For me the best FF's offering is "Obsolete" (but I have yet to hear "Archetype", though). Every track on that record not only destroys, but is also entirely different from the other. But onto "Demanufacture". The very first thing that stands out is the artificial (in a good way) marriage of guitars and drums. They seem to be one and the same, especially on "Replica". Thus NO ONE has ever played metal. Sure, there have been quasi-metal industrial bands such as Front Line Assembly (which actually offers so little metal it would not be enough for even one full length). But no one dared to take seemingly mutually exclusive elements of programming and drum machines and fuse it brilliantly with aggressive deathcore. I dare say, that this album inspired even the awesome Dark Tranquility to experiment with technology on their less straight-forward death metal releases. But that is not all, because FF also manages to infuse their music with melody reminiscent of Type O'Negative or Life OF Agony wrapped around truly devastating riffing with the crushing power not so dissimilar to Machine Head's "Burn My Eyes". The last song on "Demanufacture", phenomenal "A Therapy for Pain" even sounds like TON from "Bloody Kisses" but we are too far from actual plagiarism, in fact FF NEVER plagiarized anyone to my knowledge. All contraire, many have more or less successfully copied them (that's you, Soilwork). My all time favorite song from this masterpiece is "Self Bias Resistor", an ideal revolutionary lyrical and musical statement. Any Liberal would indeed love the lyrics, and any Conservative'll hate it. But the song also calls for using your own mind and demand individual freedom from pervasive intrusion of politics and religion. Indeed, in one of the most brilliant anti-religion anthems, even if unimaginatively named "Pisschrist" ostensibly rages against Christianity and Jesus Christ. But the song is really about the type of Christ fed to us by our corrupted self-serving pastors, the kind of IMMINENT SAVIOR FROM THIS ERA that is simply unbiblical. The Man said after all: "My Kingdom is NOT of this world." (go argue THAT in the Supreme Court!) In truth, Fear Factory may not be particularly religious, but many of their lyrics are infused with ambiguous approach to religion and spirituality. No, Fear Factory are simply SICK OF BEING LIED TO from the political or clerical sandboxes, and may in fact be against ORGANIZED religion, and since man's history provides a vast evidence that organized religion is mostly subliminal and progressive indoctrination and sometimes even oppressive brainwashing (Middle Ages) of the elites over gullible sheep, I can't blame Burton and Co. for their views. Wanna know where I draw the line: "Christ Illusion" and Slayer, but that's a whole another argument. As for "Demanufacture", the music and lyrics act as the gadfly to a society headed for Theocratic Fascism in America. This sadly has not changed in the past 12 years, but rather had gotten worse. Human beings are still worth NOTHING to their governments, and human tragedy is only defined and measured by millions not thousands of lost lives (Iraq). The most remarkable and horrifying thing about Fear Factory's message clothed in ostensible coat of Man vs. Machine concept, is that it is still relevant today, if not more. America is undergoing a Demanufacturing of reason and value of human life. So go ahead, crank up "Self Bias Resistor" and "burn away conformity"...before they take your right to do so! February 22, 2007

 One of the BEST
metal cds ever. coming from me, a 20+ yr metal vet, thats saying something. Great sound, production and execution. This has to be FF's "White Album".. great stuff that will stand the test of time along with Slayers 'Reing in Blood' and Korns debut cd... simply awesome and just melodic enough to make it work. A must!
Though i would disagree with the last reviewer (i dont consider this Death Metal at all), the rating is correct! November 30, 2006

 One of the best Death Metal record ever made
Loud, aggressive and above all precise to the last bit. A must have for anyone interested in this type of music. A true masterpiece! October 21, 2006

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