Torben's endeavors have always ceased to impress me. He might technically be a good guitarist but the material he chooses to showcase on has been lackluster at best. He is comparable to Lars Eric Mattsson in this regard as another axeslinger who may very well be adept at the instrument, or brilliant even, but what good is axenoodling if it is so boring you lose interest halfway through each song? Even Torben's
Section A project seemed by-the-numbers mostly and more crippling, it was tedious. Well played hard rock should never stoop to tedium.
For
Fatal Force though there was hope. A unique singer can sometimes save the most mediocre rock'n'roll shovelware from being pushed headfirst into the gaping oblivion where forgotten albums go to die a death of obscurity. Enter Mats Leven, a vocalist that sounds like no other really, with a raspy raw edge and plenty of force to help illustrate the necessity of the cliched band name here. He has worked with alot of bands that covered a wide assortment of rock subgenres. There was a stint with Scandi-AORsters Treat, the power metal of At Vance, the overwhelming symphonic excess of Therion, and he sang for another more well known guitar lord, Yngwie Malmsteen. Not the most spectacular set of pipes in the world, yet Mats manages to lift the music anyway.
In
Fatal Force, he improves the situation but is not their savior. Also worth mentioning is drummer Daniel Flores who lays a solid backbone of thunderous power that sounds even nicer under the production of Tommy Hansen. Hansen also was the hand behind Fate's turkey "V" recently and you still cannot fault him for either album's downfall. Fatal is booming with aural forcefulness and crispness, every instrument coming across in pompous, brutal clarity. With musicians of rather high caliber and an assortment of names on board, the Achille's Heel here is left to the songwriting.
Torben has crafted another disc that underwhelms more often than it takes us on flights of metal fancy. The music is nearly as generic as the band's monicker. Here we have very hard rock that sets a heavy leaded foot into the molten steel of power metal. Raw, biting power metal, the way it used to be made back in the 80s instead of the theatrical, intense and more cerebal music it has morphed into (those keeping it true metal, aside, of course).
The first three tracks perfectly showcase what the outfit is all about. Kicking off with
"Caveman", it is a beastial number that flexes the raw rocking spirit of the disc. Leven hits notes that could scar even the already hearing impaired. Musically it never hits any real points of interest, instead opting to play it safe and let the tried and true cliches run the song. The only thing that accomplishes is running the song right into the ground.
Next up is
"Fatal Force" which fairs much better. Enevoldsen burns up the fretboard and is impressive, even if his playing lacks any shred of soul. It is like listening to a ghost play guitar. Hits all the right notes, and strings them together just fine with precision, but he has absolutely not clue as to how to inject the performance with emotion. Or atleast, so it seems, judging by his playing. The chorus however, sparks nicely and gets the blood flowing in a metallic manner. Sure it might be a mishmash of a million other metal songs that were birthed before it, but it comes off clean and a fist pumping piece that has a handful of memorable moments.
Then its ballad time.
"Far Away" sounds about as exciting as paint drying. The guitar has the waterworks turned on with the blatantly tender touch that seems to carry emotional weight. Something about it seems fake though, which detracts, like he is trying too hard. Mats attempts to croon his way through it, though hope is pretty much lost on this piece.
The rest of the album goes back and forth between flirting with decent and falling head over heels for the subpar.
"Let Me Know" is a brainless rocker, but despite
"Out of Fuel"'s silly lyrics and ridiculously generalized metal sound, it kicks with a few killer riffs that put some faith into Torben's creativeness.
"The Only One" is the second boring ballad, and the disc really could have done with only one. Two of these is just too much to take for such a short running cd. Then there is
"Everyone", a fist-in-the-air karaoke night worthy hymn-like rocker. It quickly deviates into the land of the repetitive and annoying, leaving a shell of a song that could have been more, but isn't.
Fatal Force is a display of boring, derivitative tracks that could be much more in the hands of songwriters with more skill and who take more chances and push some boundaries. Performance wise the players pull it off but the material is so dead in the water their efforts gain little ground to greatness. Not that this is a terrible album - the songs are okay for the most part and have their moments but just being content with mediocrity is not enough to make a name for yourself these days. I hope they do continue on and put out a followup disc, if only after looking back and examining what made their "grand" debut not so grand and more like dead average. As an album buyer, with
Fatal Force, you can do worse. You can also do alot better. Not great, not awful - just the "meh" of indifference.
Written by
Alanna Thursday, May 18, 2006
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