Soilwork – The Living Infinite (2013)

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Suffering by the exit (for the second time) of their long-time guitarist and main songwriter, Peter Wichers, Soilwork manages to regroup and produce one of the best efforts to dates in the double album “The Living Infinite”. With all the band participating in the songwriting process, their latest release is actually very dynamic and diverse, exploring all facets of Soilwork’ sound from the last years.

Keeping on their Metalcore / Melodic Metal path, the band immediately opens the first CD of this release with the crushing “Spectrum of Eternity”, a track that perfectly mixes intense passages with melodic sections. Björn Strid’s vocals are once again perfect in blending harsh elements with soaring clean vocals giving the music a versatile sound that many bands fails miserably at.

Things start to get really addictive by the time we hit “This Momentary Bliss” and its super catchy chorus section. Our personal favorite track of this first CD is the super effective “Tongue” and its very epic vibe. The riffing is outstanding; a job perfectly handled by Sylvain Coudret and newcomer David Andersson.  Once can really tell that the band put all their collective efforts into writing and epic album, and the songs on this release are a statement to this.

Playful and well varied tracks like “Whispers and Lights” and “The Windswept Mercy” close the first CD in a strong fashion and allow the band to keep sounding fresh after the first 40 minutes of music pass by. Most double album releases seem to get annoying after the first half of the second CD, but luckily this is not the case for “The Living Infinite” since the band seems to come back at us with some more different sounding music with the powerful Soilwork signature.

After the acoustic intro, “Long Live The Misanthrope” and “Drowning With Silence” deliver very aggressive and melodic sections filled with excellent vocal arrangements allowing them to be very dynamic and engaging. This last song reminded us a bit of Scar Symmetry and their latest material. Our favorite track on the second CD is the emotional “The Living Infinite II”, greatly enhancing on the first song presented on the first CD, this track is very enjoyable thanks to its super catchy riffs and superb use of acoustic elements.

As the crushing tracks keep rolling, the excellent “Rise Above The Sentiment” arrives with killer guitar work and some very unique vocals. The same level of catchiness is continued with “Parasite Blues”, a track that reminds us of the band’s last release “The Panic Broadcast”. Closing with the very unique and heavy to the point of being almost Doom/Sludge, “Owl Predict Oracles Stand Guard”, the band really rattles the listeners perception with such a unique and un-Soilwork sounding piece.

For a double CD release, we are quite surprised this CD never drops in terms of quality and keeps the listener engaged for the whole duration of both CD’s. Soilwork is definitely a mature band and without Peter they have showed (once more) they can write a pretty solid album. “The Living Infinite” is filled with excellent tracks for all fans of the band, so we recommend that nobody misses this release and picks up a copy as it gets unleashed into North America on March 5th, 2013.

Band: Soilwork Album: The Living Infinite
Label: Nuclear Blast Records

Release: March 5th, 2013

Oficial Site myspace

Genre: Metalcore / Melodic Death Metal

Country: Sweden

Rating: 90/100
Year: 

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