FEAR FACTORY 'Transgression' RATING: 5/10

By JEFF MAKI

Though not a bad album, Transgression already has seemed to distance fans of the band and doesn't contain anything spectacular to draw in new listeners. Fear Factory originated as a technical death metal band in the early 1990s and has made huge strides in sound and popularity since. Never afraid to experiment, the band has combined many styles on their releases, from death, thrash, industrial and techno, along with some interesting cover tunes. After an experimentation in nu-metal with their 1999 release Obsolete, Fear Factory made a strong return to their more traditional industrial metal sound with 2004's Archetype. Transgression is indeed a metal record but is so varied in styles that it sounds like an experimental project. From a metal fan's perspective, it could best be compared to Machine Head's Supercharger. Both bands have taken similar paths in their careers, from their metal beginnings, to nu-metal and then to these alternative-metal type albums. While Machine Head has since passed this low point with their most recent album, Through The Ashes Of Empires, Fear Factory is stuck in limbo.

Maybe the departure of guitarist Dino Cazares has a lot to do with the new sound. How could it not? The riffs on Transgression are not anywhere near as strong as on past efforts and the album simply doesn’t flow. Just like Machine Head's Supercharger, the album doesn't really know what it should be. It starts off strong enough with "540,000 Degrees Fahrenheit" and "Transgression", both tracks sounding like classic Fear Factory. But by the time you get to "Empty Vision" and the slow "Echoes of My Scream," you'll probably start to grow bored, with nothing jumping out to get your attention. Then you get to the worst part of the release with "Supernova" and the cover of U2’s "I Will Follow."  "Supernova" is weak and sounds like a bad attempt to put out a radio friendly single, while "I Will Follow" is completely unnecessary. It sounds so close to the original that you wonder why it's on here in the first place. If you make it by these, you'll get a pleasant surprise with "Millenium," a Killing Joke cover. I heard the original long ago and didn't really remember it well, but after hearing this bad-ass version, I was reminded how good it was. Other songs have promising starts and contain some Fear Factory elements that'll get you interested but then seem to fizzle out about halfway through.

Transgression would be a damn good debut for a new band, but Fear Factory fans expect so much more from this great band. This just doesn’t make the grade.