Metal Underground.com

There's no question that lately death metal, even of the melodic sort, has become pretty formulaic: Add one part guttural screaming vocals, one or two parts million-mph guitar, and one part thundering kick-drum; subtract one part bass guitar, and you're there.

I wouldn't say Destinity's latest album, "The Inside," totally demolishes that formula, but it definitely adds layers of complexity to it that freshen it up quite a bit. There are a lot of interesting dualities that make for a very interesting listen.

For example, the opening track, "My Senseless Theory," kicks in with a drum part so brutal it'll make your arms and legs hurt just to think about hitting anything that hard. But the song also features an ethereal synth piano part that echoes serenely above the mayhem — and they come from the same person in the band, as drummer Morteus also handled the programming.

But even in that mayhem, there are interesting mixes of light and heavy components. Morteus' drums are full of the standard kick drum fury, but there are also great light cymbal touches in there. The guitars by Zephiros and Ponce hit hard where they need to, but during the clean vocal interludes, they hang back to provide support to synths and vocals.

If you're looking for fast fretwork, "Murder Within" is the track for you, with a drum part that races right along. But, again, there is that hint of lightness, a 1980s-style synth part that hovers above the chorus. Zephiros' solo rules the day here.

One thing I really enjoyed is that Destinity isn't afraid to slow down when the songs call for it, though Destinity's "slow" is admittedly equal to some bands' "fast." "Thing I Will Never Feel," for example, is maybe just a smidgen faster than mid-tempo — and gains intensity from that, with orchestral sounds that add intrigue. The band slows down even further on "A Thousand Falling Skies," mixing growls with a chorus of clean vocals. Mick, the lead vocalist, does OK, though there's not a lot of shading in the growls and screams.

Unfortunately, Destinity's bass player, David, is suffering from what I call "Newsted-itis," which is the inability of a bass player to be heard on an album. The only time I was really able to hear him was in smatterings of "A Thousand Falling Skies," and even then, his bass was nearly buried in the mix.

As the band hails from France, I'm willing to cut them a bit of slack on the English language lyrics. That said, they're a little clunky, with lines like "Can you see this frustrated masse so unworthy," from "Escaping Reality." Then again, without the lyrics booklet, I wouldn't know what they were anyway.

No, Destinity doesn't reinvent the wheel for melodic death metal on "The Inside," but they do refine it nicely. For fans of the genre looking for something a little different, this album ought to do the trick.