Fractured Insanity - Man Made Hell

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FRACTURED INSANITY’S third full length, “Man Made Hell,” is Death Metal bliss.  Or, Death Metal hell?  Regardless, it is an intense album that demands your listening ear if you at all like the heavier side of Metal.  Although they tend to be labeled under Brutal Death Metal, the album’s sounds are not brutal for the sake of pure shock value.   Yes, they are a fast and intense band but they are not the fastest in their field and that is a compliment.  The well thought out songs keep a decent pace and keep everything from blending in together, which is usually a problem for this genre. The opening track “Habitual Killer” sets the tone with the ominous sounds of despair.  The riffs are brutal yet bouncy and Stefan’s vocals fire off rounds of guttural screams.  There is a slight technical sound to the music, but it never over indulges.

Vocally speaking, Stefan’s vocals are a mix of highs and low but they are extremely balanced; he isn’t too guttural and neither does he delve into those pig squeals we love to hate. He often times reminds me of NILE or BEHEMOTH’s NERGAL, especially on “Inferno of a Narcissist.” Speaking of this song, it has a really neat classical piano intro before bursting into Death Metal.  It is these random moments that keep the album and band from being another stale brutal playing band.  “One Shot Salvation” is another song with some very cool parts, namely the opening crushing grooves of the riffs and the guitars in the middle of the song, feature a hypnotic melody backed by crushing, short and sharp riffs. Dieter and Kenny are a solid guitar duo and they have a variety of playing.  Sure, there are super-fast riffs but there are also some slight melodic tinges throughout some of the songs such as around the minute and half mark in the excellent “Forced To Rome.”  The last track, “Suicidal Holiness” even has moments where you swear the band suddenly switched to black metal, at least musically.   Its these random, quick, and very slight variations of Brutal Death that allow the album to stand out but still retain most of the roots. Ignance’s drums are simply insanely tight.  The double bass is almost nauseating because it’s so fast and at times he pounds the snare so fast, I think he might have a battery up his ass.  On top of all that, his cymbal work is great and, I daresay, catchy.

Song writing: 8
Originality: 7
Memorability: 8
Production: 8