This Ending "Inside the Machine" (Metal Blade)
By Taylor Green
Tuesday. Jan 23, 1:18 PM
Pick up Callenish Circle or Mnemic instead.

This Ending are a formula heard many times before. In fact, upon my first few listens to this album, the band sounded like a mash of Demanufacture-era Fear Factory with Thelema.6-era Behemoth. This Ending send forth another melodic death band onto the scene way past its time, mistaking heaviness for quality songwriting. While bands like Behemoth and Fear Factory engage the listener with structure beyond gimmicky hooks and overbearing speed, This Ending lack the firepower to extend beyond comparisons and similarities. There's nothing on Inside the Machine that I haven't heard done better somewhere else. From the opener, the band come across as a poor man's Behemoth and don't stop there.

It's a real shame, too, because – as musicians – they seem talented enough. Some of the drumming on the record is simply amazing. To be considered a poor man's Behemoth does mean that you're able to pull off Behemoth style hyperblasts, which is not as easy as it sounds. However, rather than crafting engaging material that captures the members’ talents, they try and bank on gimmicks alone.

I'm not even sure what Metal Blade saw in this band, because – as a label – Metal Blade is generally forward thinking and locking up some of the genre’s more unique acts. Don't be mistaken by the label or the cover art: Inside the Machine is nothing that wasn't done already in 1995. Spare your $15 and go pick up Callenish Circle or Mnemic records. They do this sort of thing much better.
www.thisending.com
www.metalblade.com

Listen to a song from this album in our Radio section!

Click here to buy this album on iTunes!

Click here to download the iTunes jukebox application for Macintosh or Windows!

Taylor Green

Got something constructive to say? By all means, rant away. Gonna blab about something unrelated and/or talk shit? Don't expect your comment to stick around.