The Infection

Chimaira

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 21, 2009)
• Original Release Date: April 21, 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Ferret
• ASIN: B001TT7UAE
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #76,401 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

With their groundbreaking blend of metal, hardcore and electronic elements, Chimaira made a splash with a self-released EP that sold nearly 10,000 copies. But it was "The Impossibility Of Reason" that blew the lid off, putting the band on the road with Slipknot, Machine Head, Lamb Of God, and Ozzfest. 2007 saw the release of their first album for Ferret Music, "Resurrection." Now comes "The Infection". Limited edition version includes a bonus audio track and a bonus DVD with making of, behind-the-scenes interviews, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars I have to try to like The Infection more, April 22, 2009

By	Scott A. Mattes (Los Altos, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I've been a fan of Chimaira since The Impossibility of Reason was released and I've loved everything they've done since then... But here, we have The Infection: over half the songs on this album have painfully slow tempos, and they've dropped their tuning again ("Pass Out of Existence" low).

There are many aspects of The Infection that are similar to their previous releases, such as the musical part; it's often very predictable, such as in "Secrets of the Dead" the last bar after the first chorus, before the second verse, they return with the tuplet theme that is matched by the drums on the snare... Very Chimaira. Rob's solos on The Infection are very reminiscent of the solos on Resurrection, as well (which is not necessarily a bad thing!)

The only other negative comment I have about this album is that there are several very awkward tempo changes in various songs, for example at a couple points in "The Venom Inside," the tempo changes are almost jolting to listen to; it's like someone is shaking you and turning you in the opposite direction unexpectedly.

Negative comments aside, I absolutely love Rob Arnold's style of guitar-playing. He creates the feel for the entire band, and it's certainly present on The Infection. Mark Hunter has taken some new approaches to his vocals, mixing the low-end vocals with his normal high's, and he even takes a whispering-singing approach on "Impending Doom," which is very, very eerie. Andols Herrick has further proven himself as the master of the double bass, which seems to be his main focus, although on this album he does dip his toes a little more into blast beats and several other techniques that have been used scarcely in Chimaira's past.

Overall, this album is good- not great. It takes some conditioning to get used to it, but songs like "Coming Alive" and "On Broken Glass" definitely save The Infection being tossed aside.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A GREAT CHANGE OF PACE:, April 23, 2009

By	Drew T. Lalewicz "Drew" (Buffalo, NY) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Let me first start out by saying I am a long time fan of Chimaira. Living in Buffalo NY, Cleveland OH is like our city's cousin & I've followed this band before they were even signed. They've always strived to make a full cohesive sound to their music through the use of electronics. Now this isnt to say that their " Industrial " in any way, the use of keyboards is means to add depth to their music & also seperate them from alot of standard thrash bands.

Now when Chimaira started out their sound was unique to their genere & some may argue that point, & here is my counter to that. When other bands catergorized under the NU-Metal genere were doing the standard SCREAM, SING, SCREAM, SING formula trying to cash in the Killswitch Engage, Limp Bizkit, Korn, & so many others formulas, Chimaira kept it heavy & fast! The difference between mediocre & great bands is the ability to adapt & grow. Chimaira has done this throughout their entire career. When others tried to mimic there style, Chimaira ran in another direction. And now days when record labels are snatching up every wanna be southern grooved scream band trying to now cash in on Lamb of Gods popularity, Chimaira have again gone in another direction. And it chased them right back to what made them GREAT to begin with! The Infection is everything Chimaira fans loved about this band to begin with (literally) & then some!

The Infection sees Chimaira going back to their roots with darker & more mature sound. The songs are not fast for the sake of being fast & are much more crafted then previous recordings. And on a BIG PLUS side Spicuzza (sorry if I botched the name) has a large role in this CD as he did on their Pass out of Exsistence album. All these things make for a truely bruising & dark album that only Chimaira could have pulled off so perfectly. GREAT ALBUM!

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, July 21, 2009

By	DimeLives - See all my reviews

Simply excellent. Little more needs to be said. If you are a solid metal fan who cares about more than just show-offy BS, do not hesitate to pick this up. Takes more than one listen to "get", but not because it's sub-par, because there is so much depth to it, which is one of the best things about this horribly underrated band. An invaluable addition to their INCREDIBLE catalogue. Buy it. Dig it.