CANOBLISS

I used to grab any piece of groove metal that came my way, much as I do most genres that light my fire at any given time, before label-led saturation caused me to lose interest. Enough time had passed when Canobliss' prior recording 'Psychothermia' dropped on my lap. It was an interesting piece of metal, bordering on the groovy, which gained decent reviews; from myself included. 'Man is the Enemy' is their latest opus to grace my ears, and there's a distinct Stone Sour/Slipknot thing going on. With a bit of Placebo too. It's dropped the obvious groove of the previous recording, whilst retaining those nu-metal leanings, and has become a bit pop-metal. I don't say that to deride this, but there is a definite air of commercialism to the whole thing. Whether that puts you off or not will depend on whether you see progression as purely a musical trait, or a harmonious business one too. Clearly there is a desire here to get radio play, and who can blame them. But then why deny them that; it's their bread and butter right? So, money-grabbing ethics aside, do the songs in their newly polished and simplified guises stand up? Of course they do. Korn and Slipknot made a career of just about keeping their head above the mire when it came to marrying economics with integrity. Canobliss certainly have the ability to pen songs with enough bite to remain metal enough for the moshpit, but with enough hooks to persuade the kids to part with their hard-earned. Will we see Canobliss' name revered in the same way as their contemporaries? Only time, and the fickle nature of the five-minute attention span, will tell. But, this is a triumphant piece of metal that should proudly sit on your shelf regardless.

LABEL:

FORMAT:

Self-released

Album

MAN IS THE ENEMY

Review by Steve Cowan

RUNNING TIME:

49:55

RELEASE DATE:

May 2010

TRACK LISTING

1) Hit the Floor
2) Pale Rider
3) Man is the Enemy
4) Derrama Tu Sangre
5) Comatose
6) No Angel
7) Black Cadillac
8) Zombie Parade
9) Coffin Case Passion
10) Tools of the Trade
11) Earth A.D.D.

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:

USA

"Canobliss certainly have the ability to pen songs with enough bite to remain metal enough for the moshpit, but with enough hooks to persuade the kids to part with their hard-earned."