Children of Bodom is a band that many fans of Heavy Metal have mixed feelings towards. They're that type of band that the majority of fans like one part of their career, and dislike the others. They're also a band that has a lot of mixed views when it comes to their albums. The band itself started out very heavy in their music, even with keyboards. But as the years passed, they started to get softer. And this change is something that not everybody has enjoyed.
Are You Dead Yet? is a perfect example of this. The band's fifth full studio album was the first to receive a widespread mixed review. Sure the other COD albums before it had mixed opinions, but Are You Dead Yet? seemed to have a very split base of opinion. People either praised it as one if not their best record, and others outright hated. Some even stood in the middle of this argument and stated that the album is good, but isn't their best work.
So why is is this album so regarded as a mixed bag? Well, let's look at it and find out.
The line up for the album is what has been the line up since 2003. Alexi Laiho on lead guitar and vocals, Jaska Raatikainen on drums, Janne Warman on keyboards, Henkka T. Blacksmith on bass, and Roope
Latvala on backing guitars.
The musician ship of the recording is as great as always in my opinion. Everything can be heard clearly instrument wise, and the vocals are clean and audible. At times, the guitar work of Laiho can seem to be lost, but these instances are few and far between. The quality of the album is pretty top notch as well.
The tracklisting is as follows:
1. Living Dead Beat
2. Are You Dead Yet?
3. If You Want Peace...Prepare For War
4. Punch Me I Bleed
5. In Your Face
6. Next In Line
7. Bastards of Bodom
8. Trashed, Lost and Strungout
9. We're Not Gonna Fall
One of the major problems I read and hear that people have with the album, is that it's too soft. Really? I'll agree that certain parts of songs, or songs as a whole can feel softer then the loud and thrashy sound that some we're/are use to hearing of the band. But it's never completely and utterly soft.
Some songs do rely on the keyboards more then the guitars, and I think that this is probably where the softness people complain about comes from. In fact, it seems that anytime a metal band puts keyboards at a bit more importance then the regular instruments, the fans and critics pan it. If you want any proof of how people will react to this type of thing, just read reviews for the newer Dimmu Borgir albums.
Now as far as the pros of the sound of the songs go, there's quite a few. The structure for each songs is well built in my personal opinion. Each track offers something to keep you coming back. I've caught my self almost always hitting the replay button on a good chunk of the tracks when I'm not blowing through it all in one go. And it shows that while this is a Heavy Metal record, it can be catchy.
The guitar work is the standout for the entire recording in my humble opinion. I can head bang to almost every track, as well as go ape shit with air guitaring. When the guitars get down and dirty, it's when they really shine through.If You Want Peace...Prepare For War, Bastards of Bodom, and Trashed Lost and Strungout really show this off greatly.
The lyrics themselves, while they can be a tad weird at times, are relatively solid. But there are some that seem weird. The weirdest example of this in my view is In Your Face. The sound of the instruments and the lyrics present a very Thrash and Death Metal ring to it. However during the chorus of the song, it turns into a keyboard riffing melodic singing style. I don't have anything against this, but it does feel awkward since the song and lyrical structure does present Thrash Death. Then again, the band is Melodic Death Metal.
As far as a standout track/s go, it's really hard to pick a few. All of them are good in their own special way. But I'd say the heavy hitters of the album are the title track (Are You Dead Yet?), If You Want Peace...Prepare For War, and Bastards of Bodom. Some other tracks that while aren't heavy hitters, but are pretty good are Living Dead Beat, Punch Me I Bleed, In Your Face, and Trashed Lost and Strungout.
In conclusion, Are You Dead Yet? is an album with mixed pros and cons. The main cons of the album are the sometimes drifting guitar work of mister Laiho, and the occasional break/weird moment of the song and lyric structure. However outside of those few issues, the album is a great piece of work from the band. It's a shame that some people find a ton of faults with it, as there aren't a whole lot.
Regardless of what other people think, it's one of my favorite albums. And while it can be bad, when it's good, it's fucking great.
B -
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