Metal Underground.com

In recent years, the veterans of Swedish melodic death metal have lost their way what with In Flames trending towards alt-metal and Dark Tranquillity putting out three consecutive albums with very little difference between them. Even the recent At the Gates reunion did not yield any new music. Soilwork’s last album “Sworn to a Great Divide” was no exception as they eschewed their former sound for a more simple, thrash-oriented record. So with “The Panic Broadcast,” I was hoping for a return to Soilwork’s powerful brand of melodic death metal.

The album opens with one of it’s heaviest tracks, “Late for the Kill, Early for the Slaughter,” with blistering riffage reminiscent of the latest Dimension Zero work. The chorus for this song is probably also the most memorable on the album. They follow up with “Two Lives of Reckoning” that displays classic Soilwork clean vocals courtesy of Bjorn “Speed” Strid that harkens back to “Natural Born Chaos.”

Many of the main riffs have a Lamb of God vibe to them and aren’t exceptionally interesting but definitely heavy, paired with blistering double-bass drumming. The synthesizers seem to take a back seat in this album, possibly influenced by the return of guitarist Peter Wilchers to the studio. “Let This River Flow” starts with an acoustic intro and maintains an emotional vibe, thanks to Bjorn’s best singing on the disc. Those hoping for a return to classic melodeath will probably enjoy “The Akuma Afterglow” which has a solid main riff and the genre trademark twin-lead guitars. The album finishes on a strong note with “Enter Dog of Pavlov,” which represents some of the most experimental work of the band’s career and maintains an aggressive stance straight through to the end.

What sets this album apart from its predecessor is the lead guitar work, with the majority of the songs containing frantic, thrashy solos. These are often preceded by solid interludes that display some of the best musicianship on the album. It was a pleasure to listen to Wichers and Sylvain Coudret trade off solos throughout the album, much like the most recent releases from Annihilator and Megadeth.

Soilwork appears to be back on track after a lackluster previous release, but the main problem with this album is that it contains few memorable songs or choruses. Sure “20 More Miles” wasn’t a brilliant display of lyrical penmanship, but it did get stuck in my head. This album definitely feels more like a thrash release than melodic death metal at times, but it is a solid display of musicianship, just not quite on par with their greatest albums such as “The Chainheart Machine” and “Predator’s Portrait.” Soilwork doesn’t rise above more recent arrivals on the scene like Scar Symmetry with “The Panic Broadcast” but there are enough moments in this album to make it worth a listen.