 
Those groove metal bastards Five Finger Death
Punch are set to increase their album count to
3 on October 11th with their latest effort “American
Capitalist”. I have not yet managed to find
one single track from this bands back catalogue
that I particularly dislike, sure I prefer some
to others as will every fan but I do actually
thoroughly enjoy all of them. This however raises
the question, could this be the album that breaks
the run? I feel I should explain the reason for
my scepticism; normally by the third album bands
are at high risk of exhausting their sound, it’s
the reason why some artists end up tampering with
or changing their style which can then lead to
mountains of abuse, whilst others struggle to
work with deadlines which can lead to a rushed
and stale sounding album. Will either of these
disappointing situations befall one of my most
beloved bands?
Another circumstance that puts doubt in my mind
is purely the fact that the band’s sound
heavily relies on bass; the bass adds the groove
without that their distinctive edge doesn’t
exist, with this in mind the bands original bass
player Matt Snell left prior to this album, which
scares me. The first insight as to the albums
direction was given in the form of first single
“Under and Over it” back in July;
this single was vintage FFDP, it encompassed everything
the bands distinctive sound is, truly heavy metal
with a funky groove rippling through every note.
What I was most impressed with was Ivan Moody’s
vocals on that chorus; I think his melodies get
more infectious with every release.
Having referenced the fact that originality may
be taking a hit as well as the bass worries I’ll
address those first. I’m quickly put at
ease from the very beginning, the bass on these
songs is just as bouncy as it’s ever been;
producer Kevin Churko steps in to lend a helping
hand by playing bass on the album and he absolutely
nailed it, I dare anyone to listen to “Generation
Dead” and tell me otherwise. As far as the
rest of the album goes, right from fury of title
track “American Capitalist” through
to extremely theatrical song “100 Ways to
Die”, the style displayed is still the lively
metal chaos that’s was introduced back on
the debut album and followed through the followed
up also, this time however they’ve pushed
it further than ever before.
The biggest thing with Five Finger Death Punch
is the sheer range of material they can cover;
they can produce some real bruisers like “Menace”
which is aggressive in both musical style and
lyrical content, beautiful lighter themed like
“Remember Everything” as well as ranging
between the 2 ends. “Coming Down”
sounds really beautiful but has a very sinister
vibe to match the lyrical themes, “Remember
Everything” is really heartfelt and full
of emotion, “The Pride” is impressive
purely for managing to fit Facebook Myspace and
iPod into the lyrics. That covers the lighter
side of the album, now onto the beasty metal side;
tracks like “American Capitalist”,
“Menace” and “Under and Over
it” are still in typical Death Punch fashion,
you shall grunt and smack your head around to
them for years and years to come.
Having listened to the album nonstop for a few
days now, It’s what I imagine a crack addiction
to feel like; whether I’m at Uni, driving,
playing Xbox or doing work I find myself constantly
reaching for my iPod to put it on and not quietly
either. The streak still continues as again not
one song do I dislike from the new release, I
pray to God that the band are over our shores
again for a festival and a nice long tour!
5/5
Review by James Webb
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