The masked Iowans sixth full-length effort,
We Are Not Your Kind
, sees a confidant and apoplectic
Slipknot
in full command of their craft, delivering a searing 14-track set that's as versatile as it is observant of nu-metal's architectural truisms. Far removed from the desultory aggro-metal being dished out by veteran contemporaries like
Saliva
and
Limp Bizkit
,
bristles with both intent and imagination.
Corey Taylor
and company have weathered their fair share of personal and professional woes over the years -- overdose, divorce, lineup changes, and lawsuits, not to mention an increasingly mercurial musical landscape -- but they have consistently managed to turn misfortune into grist for the sonic mill. After a short cinematic opening, the band gets down to business with fiery lead single "Unsainted," an infectious marriage of melody and might and a juggernaut of stadium-ready rage. The transient "Death Because of Death," with its carnival-like electro-industrial pulses and eerie refrain of "Death because of death because of you," sets the table for the unrelenting groove-laden rap-metal of "Nero Forte." The group goes full-on electro-rock -- think
Imagine Dragons
-meets-
Korn
-- on the sleek and sinewy "Spiders," and add twisty, melancholic progressive rock to their arsenal on the surprisingly heartfelt "My Pain" and the turbo-charged
High on Fire
-esque stoner metal on the uncompromising closer "Solway Firth." More than anything else,
feels locked-in on a personal level -- that aforementioned sense of melancholy resides uncomfortably close to the surface throughout -- and that human touch resonates, even as the band unleashes volley after volley of tribal rhythms, scorching riffage, and fathomless decibels. ~ James Christopher Monger