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7 out of 10
For a band to sit down and not take notice of the scene around them seems to be a unifying force of Germanic metal. Say Hello To Tragedy is metalcore by numbers, but painted in ear pleasingly crushing stereo. When so many bands are beginning to rely on the open note, chugged breakdown Caliban seem to be ignoring all that and pushing forward with their own brand of European heaviness. The melodic guitar and vocal work of Denis Schmidt interweaves with the brutality of the bottom end in a sublime and understated way. The vocals of Andreas Doemer shredding through every track leaving no stone unturned in his quest to bring the listener to their knees. Lyrically, the topics dealt with are that of a lack of care for the world around them and the people around in this world that would rather turn a blind eye to their goings on, one song even referring to the Fritzl case which was plastered across the world's press earlier this year.
This record is a vast improvement on their past two releases (Which in my opinion sounded too much like Killswitch Engage and As I Lay Dying for their own good) and may even be the best thing they've put to record since the 2001 release of Vent. Track by track, things do start to get a bit muddled together after the second or third listen, but then again, this is usually the case with bands in this style. If you're looking for a record to bring something fresh to the table, then this isn't the one for you. If, however you are looking for some familiar territory then Say Hello To Tragedy may be gracing your top five end of year lists.
Listen: www.myspace.com/caliban
Tracklist:
1. 24 Years
2. Love Song
3. Caliban's Revenge
4. End This Sickness
5. Walk Like The Dead
6. No One Is Safe
7. Liar
8. The Denegation Of Humanity
9. Unleash Your Voice
10. All I Gave
11. In The Name Of Progression
12. Coma
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