CHILDREN OF BODOM

Are You Dead Yet?

Spinefarm
rating icon 7.5 / 10

Track listing:

01. Living Dead Beat
02. Are You Dead Yet?
03. If You Want Peace...Prepare for War
04. Punch Me I Bleed
05. In Your Face
06. Next in Line
07. Bastards of Bodom
08. Trashed, Lost & Strungout
09. We're Not Gonna Fall
10. Somebody Put Something in My Drink


"Are You Dead Yet?" is the sound of a band that has firmly locked into a comfortable groove. Following the breakout success of 2003's "Hate Crew Deathroll", CHILDREN OF BODOM's fifth studio effort retains the classic guitar wizardry, keyboard flourishes, and keen sense of melody with a more mid-paced, decidedly crunchier approach. Rather than take a forced leap into the commercial stratosphere, "Are You Dead Yet?" is only a slight "progression," the group continuing to rely on an upbeat thrashiness, vaguely power metal tunefulness, and a big rock and roll heart.

The ripping guitar solos and wild keyboard splashes still remain, but don't jump out at you to quite the same degree as on previous releases. Each song is anchored by a pronounced, yet not over-the-top, melodic chorus. There are no tunes that stand out to the same extent as "Sixpounder" and "Needle 24/7" from "Hate Crew Deathroll", but a couple of tunes come close. I thought "Trashed, Lost & Strungout" was a classic COB tune on the EP of the same name and still do with its reappearance here. In fact, it is one of the better tracks on an album with no momentum-killers. An upside to what could be considered a lack of COB classics is the consistent quality of each of the songs, which in some ways makes "Are You Dead Yet?" work better as a complete album. In addition to the chunky, rough-edged riffs and soaring keyboard parts of mid-to-up tempo rockers like the title track and "Living Dead Beat", the tempo is taken down on a dark creeper called "Punch Me I Bleed". It would not be a COB album without a song with "Bodom" in the title. "Bastards of Bodom" has a vintage COB feel in its pacing, keyboard lines, and guitar leads. Keeping with the tradition of COB covers, the band's version of the RAMONES' "Somebody Put Something in My Drink" is exclusive to the U.S. release. Too bad it is not included on my promotional copy, as I dig the original and would not doubt that COB does it justice.

"Are You Dead Yet?" is a strong COB album that will probably end up being its most successful sales-wise, at least in North America. As much as it has going for it, I don't get the same sense of excitement that albums like "Hate Crew Deathroll" gave me. That hardly makes it a disappointment though.

Author:
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).