CITY OF FIRE

If, like me, you found the last Fear Factory album to be a little, ironically, 'mechanical', you may be interested to hear that 'City of Fire' is a heart-warming glow in comparison. Of course, it's difficult to talk about City of Fire without mentioning Burton and Byron's day-job. However, it's fair to say that while there are cues taken from Fear Factory on this CD, there are also shades of Burton's, probably lesser-known, but equally valid, side-project Ascension of the Watchers. In fact, it wouldn't be much of a stretch to imagine City of Fire as a mid-way point between the extremes of both bands. Naturally though, it's the strength of the songs that will determine whether it was worthwhile releasing this CD so hot on the heels of 'Mechanize'. Thankfully, the tunes are both heavy and melodic while having the benefit of being incredibly catchy. City of Fire should be praised for making a side-project sound so vital, fresh, and, most importantly, lovingly crafted. A lot of work has clearly been put in to making the music fizz; 'Rising' on its own is worth the admission. The general vibe of the album is a mix of the semi-industrial/melodic era of 'Digimortal' (don't laugh) and the Southern guitar sludge of NOLA-era Down, with Burton switching between his growl/howl of Fear Factory and his mournful insular wails, which were so beautifully rendered on the AOTW album. Closing track ‘Rain’ , a cover of The Cult's classic eighties brooder, could even be their tribute to the late Pete Steele, such is Burton’s choice of vocal style and the overall gothic tone. Even without the band's celebrity make-up, or maybe despite of it, this is a worthwhile purchase. Let's hope that it isn't their last, as this is truly excellent stuff.

LABEL:

FORMAT:

Candlelight Records

Album

CITY OF FIRE

Review by Steve Cowan

RUNNING TIME:

47:40

RELEASE DATE:

13th Oct 2010

TRACK LISTING

1) Carve Your Name
2) Gravity
3) Rising
4) A Memory
5) Spirit Guide
6) Coitus Interruptus
7) Hanya
8) Emerald
9) Hollow Land
10) Dark Tides
11) Rain

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:

USA

"City of Fire should be praised for making a side-project sound so vital, fresh, and, most importantly, lovingly crafted."