ONE OF US IS THE KILLER

Dillinger are a band that I've had a mixed relationship with in the past. I've always been interested in these guys from day one, but no matter what they did, there was always something about them that turned me off them, especially album wise. Their first few releases, a bit too crazy for my liking, slowly became slightly slowed down on their 2nd full length 'Miss Machine'. Now this is when things started to peek up for me interest wise. The guys decided to take a better approach at songwriting, with a lot of progressive influences throughout. The follow up, Ire Works was my favourite album of theirs a while, mainly because it was almost like 2 albums, with the crazy side and the more melodic side being almost separate and very noticeable Sadly, 'Option Paralysis' really wasn't my cup of tea. The ideas where strong and the sound was good, but it just seems that a lack of songwriting was the big problem. Other people love the album it seems, but it it really wasn't my thing.

Really the big problem I've always had with these guys is that they at times are like 2 bands...a mathcore band and a progressive metal band, who switch whenever they feel like it. The 2 could never really gel well, or at least they have never been able to mix them with success. But on this album...they've accomplished this.

Yea, I heard a lot of good things about this album, so when I finally got down to listening to it, I was very happy that everything that I wanted to hear on a Dillinger album is here.

The sound of the band is still similar, but this album really shows of how the songwriting has progressed and changed. The songs, instead of being crazy collections of discords, drum patterns and odd time signatures are now cohesive collections, with amazing build ups and changes of tone throughout.

One of the oddest quotes I heard about this album was from my brother, who basically said 'it's their most extreme but also their most accessible', and in many ways I agree with him. The album is definitely accessible with the popiness of some songs and the accessibility of the whole album, but...this is a very dark album. Instrumentally, it is to the point of almost injury inducing, with the bass and drums acting like a hammer to brain, while the guitar drills your gums. Greg's vocals are like every bad and angry comment spat at you like a snake shooting it's venom.

The album opener 'Prancer' and lead single really is a highlight for this band. I think anyone who has heard this song has wanted to buy the album straight after listening to it.

'When I Lost My Bet' flows perfectly from Prancer, in fact I thought it was the 2nd part to Prancer. A song based almost on a swing beat with stabs of staccato flourishes. As the song progresses it completely explodes.

The albums title track is a 'Dillinger' ballad. A slower and more melodic song, but definitely one of the highlights. A rather catchy and surprisingly powerful song.

Another major part of the album is the track 'Paranoia Shields.' A very dramatic and changing song with a very powerful performance from Greg.

One of the albums highlights has to be 'Crossburner.' The album's longest song, this one is packed full of drama and some heart wrenching vocals from Greg.

In conclusion, this is definitely the band's best album and their shining moment. These guys are like wine...it takes a while for them to really expose their flavours, so leaving them out for a few years will make them taste better. These guys have received a lot of attention in the past, and because of this release I think they should receive more. These guys have reclaimed their status as one of the worlds most interesting groups, most adventurous, both live and in the studio.

8.8/10