MACHINE HEAD — The Burning Red (review)

MACHINE HEAD — The Burning Red album cover Album · 1999 · Nu Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
UMUR
"The Burning Red" is the 3rd full-length studio album by US groove/alternative metal act Machine Head. The album was released in August 1999 through Roadrunner Records. There´s been a lineup change before the recording of this album as original guitarist Logan Mader has been replaced by Ahrue Luster.

The music on "The Burning Red" is a mix of groove metal riffing and alternative metal ideas. The groove thrashy riffing from the two predecessors are completely gone from the band´s sound. It´s a bit surprising to find lead vocalist/guitarist Robb Flynn singing rap style vocals a couple of times during the album´s playing time and the fact that the first "regular" track on the album ("Enter the Phoenix" is an intro) "Desire to Fire" is the track which features most rap parts, clearly shows that this is something the band are proud of and want to emphasise. Wether or not you enjoy rap in metal is your choice, but if you don´t, consider yourself warned. The vocals are mostly either raw or clean sung though, so the rap parts are not that dominant. The clean singing and the melodies sung in those sections remind me of Stone Temple Pilots or maybe Alice in Chains-lite. The raw vocals are shouting and angry as usual.

Most tracks are of a decent quality and they are performed with conviction. Very few stand out from the pack though and those that do doesn´t necessarily do so in a positive way. Check out the bland and uninspired cover of "Message in a Bottle" by The Police for the worst proof of that. In the positive department the sound production is professional and it suits the music well. While the riffs are groove based and at times quite heavy and punchy, Machine Head have completely abandoned their thrash metal roots on "The Burning Red". There are more mellow clean sung parts on this album than on the two predecessors and overall "The Burning Red" isn´t as effectful and punchy as those two predecessors either. In comparison it´s much more dynamic and slightly more varied though, so it´s not all bad.

The chances of you enjoying "The Burning Red" probably depends a lot on your musical background and how open minded you are towards alternative metal. Personally I find it quite disappointing that Machine Head abandoned all their thrash metal roots on the album, and I can´t say I find the rap parts very enjoyable either, so there are definitely a couple of things on "The Burning Red" that drags it down to me. It´s still a professional sounding album and I´m sure the band won as many fans as they lost with "The Burning Red". I think a 3 star rating is warranted.
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