Fleshless is notorious for having silly album covers. Disproportionate people doing odd things ranging from implementing bizarre torture methods to wheelbarrowing corpses, each cover features their own demented Eddy-esque mascot. Having picked up Slaves Of The God Machine hoping for some brutal death metal (or maybe even grindcore) fun, I was quite surprised when melodious hooks and even an "emotional" synth blared out of my speakers.
The surprise wasn't too long lived as I began to digest the tracks. Each had its share of predictable, forgettable chug-along riffs. In fact Slaves Of The God Machine is pretty much littered with them, the occasional hook or lead bursting through the mire of mediocrity to send you into a headbanging frenzy for 10-15 seconds before you're forced to endure another minute of insipidity. There's a few solid highlights like "False Ascension," the mosh-friendly "Truth In Flesh," and the brutal death metal tinged "Mechanic Pregnancy." The rest of the album has a few decent mid-paced thrash-along riffs (like on "Sins Reversed"), but it's nothing I haven't heard a hundred times before.
Vocally speaking, there's still a hint of brutal death metal in the music. Vladimir Prokos' vocals drop to the occasional abyssal gurgle, which is a bit odd considering the melodic leads usually playing at the same time. The musicianship on Slaves Of The God Machine is entirely competent, and the production suits this kind of music well. Sadly the songwriting itself isn't nearly as interesting, and you'll find yourself saying "I've heard this before" several times throughout the album.
Oh and did I mention they totally have songs called "Intro" and "Outro" on here? I fucking hate that.
5.25 out of 10
Tracklisting:
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