Doomsday Machine (album)

Doomsday Machine

Cover art by Joachim Luetke
Studio album by Arch Enemy
Released July 26, 2005
Recorded March – May 2005 at Slaughterhouse Studio in Sweden
Genre Melodic death metal
Length 49:05
Label Century Media
Producer Rickard Bengtsson
Arch Enemy chronology
Dead Eyes See No Future
(2004)		 Doomsday Machine
(2005)		 Revolution Begins
(2007)
Singles from Doomsday Machine
  1. "Nemesis"
    Released: 2005
  2. "My Apocalypse"
    Released: 2005
  3. "Taking Back My Soul"
    Released: 2005
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Blabbermouth.net7.0/10[2]
PopMatters[3]
Rock Hard (de)8.5/10[4]

Doomsday Machine is the sixth studio album by Swedish death metal band Arch Enemy, produced by Rickard Bengtsson and mixed by Andy Sneap. It is the third album to feature the vocals of Angela Gossow. The album had some commercial success reaching number 87 on the Billboard 200 selling 12,000 copies.[5] Christopher Amott left the band shortly after recording the album in July 2005 but rejoined 2 years later for the songwriting sessions for Rise of the Tyrant.

Reception

If I had to offer comparatives of any sort as to what AE sound like these days I honestly don't think I could be any more accurate than to say that they have on Doomsday Machine managed to successfully combine both the glinting-frost melodic aggression of the Swedish Gothenburg scene with the six-string technical prowess of latter-years Megadeth (more specifically Symphony of Destruction/Youthanasia-era 'Deth).

“
”

– Ciaran Meeks, Metal Eater[6]

Doomsday Machine received mixed reviews by critics. Adrien Begrand of PopMatters praised the songs highlighting "Enter the Machine", "Nemesis" and "My Apocalypse". He said that Michael and Christopher Amott "truly shine on the album" and that Arch Enemy "marry the brutal with the melodic" with "impressive skill".[7] Tom Day of musicOMH, that also praised "Enter the Machine" calling it of "a prime example of metal at its very, very best... This instrumental is simply breathtaking", said that Arch Enemy "set themselves apart from so many mediocre death metal acts by never letting their songs stagnate."[8] Pal Meentzen of Maelstrom said that Doomsday Machine "gives a worthy example of the best in current day (Swedish) melo-death. It is a slightly better album than Wages of Sin and much better than Anthems of Rebellion" and called "My Apocalypse" of "perfect example of a band that has found the right consistency in its line-up." However, he criticized the fade out of "Slaves of Yesterday".[9] Evil Rocker of Metal Rules noted that "perhaps the most impressive aspect of this album is the heavy use of dual guitars and solo's [sic], not something usually in the forefront of this genre."[10] Jackie Smit of Chronicles of Chaos felt that the album presents significant improvements over the previous album Anthems of Rebellion and commented that it "as a whole is likely to disappoint only the most selective listener."[11] Eduardo Rivadavia of Allmusic said that Doomsday Machine is "fundamentally, yet another immaculately produced Arch Enemy album, forged first and foremost by the vision of Michael Amott's guitar."[12] Ciaran Meeks of Metal Eater commented that the band "have harked back to their roots on this album, reworking and revitalizing the musical philosophy of albums such as Stigmata and Burning Bridges into a new-millennial context that will doubtless bludgeon both old and new listeners alike into drop-jawed submission."[6]

Tajs Kolman of RevelationZ Magazine noted that the songs are mixed a lot and that the album "started out great with some killer songs and an amazing sound but they obviously put the hits in the beginning. If the rest of the songs could have kept up the standard of the first ones, they would probably have had a serious hit in their hands." Nevertheless, he commented that apart from these few problems, it "stands out with its most impressive production, the amazing guitar solos and generally solid musicianship."[13] Tony Belcher of Tartarean Desire liked of the band, but unlike Westland, Belcher criticized the Gossow vocals and the lyrics. He praised Andy Sneap stating that his "touch is masterful" and mentions that the album is better than Anthems of Rebellion and similar to Wages of Sin.[14] Michael Dalakos of Metal Temple felt that the album "catches the band at its best." He praised the guitar solos stating that "simply must be the best Amott has ever delivered with this band in their entire career." However, Dalakos mentions that in the record it is really hard to figure out the Gossow actual voice since it is covered with layers of effects and that "she's just another growler using technology".[15] On the other hand, Lords of Metal's Ralph, stated that the "vocal achievement of Angela Gossow make this album the ultimate combination of aggression and melody."[16]

Jason Jordan of Metal Review wrote a negative review where he states that the band "haven't crafted anything purchase-worthy since Johan Liiva was fronting the crew." Jordan also comments that "while Doomsday Machine isn't utterly devoid of arresting ingredients, you probably won't glean as much satisfaction from this as you will from Black Earth or Burning Bridges."[17] MetalGeorge of Metal Rules also criticized the album saying that it "severs all ties between the band and [its] old fan base by catering even more to the plague that is the New Wave of American Heavy Metal" and that "where as albums such as Burning Bridges and Wages of Sin lead the heavy metal charge, Doomsday Machine seems content to merely follow in the trodden footsteps of today's trends and common sounds."[18] Greg Pratt of Exclaim! wrote that the album is "basically more of the same but they've managed to revitalise their sound a bit, adding in some toe-tapping maturity, along with the usual balls-out shredding."[19] Cosmo Lee of Stylus Magazine concluded that "minus that instrumental, and with more focused songwriting, this album could have been killer. Instead, it is a collection of riffs strung together, with some hot guitar playing."[20] Keith Bergman of Blabbermouth.net said that "overall, the album leaves a pretty good impression, though it seems to be lacking a certain spark that made earlier efforts essential listening."[21] Not unlike him, Justin Donnelly of Blistering felt that the album "lies somewhere in between both damnation and acclaim, without being one of the other." He commented that the record is not terrible, but "an inconsistent and unfocussed effort" and that Doomsday Machine "overall is stronger than Anthems of Rebellion, but it is hardly a huge leap forward in terms of consistency."[22]

Accolades

Doomsday Machine received one nomination at the 2005 Metal Storm Awards in the category of The Best Melodeath/Gothenburg Album. It was ranked in the second position behind Character by Dark Tranquillity.[23]

In 2005, the album was ranked number 470 in Rock Hard magazine's book of The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time.[24]

Track listing

All music composed by Michael Amott, Daniel Erlandsson and Christopher Amott.

No. TitleLyrics Length
1. "Enter the Machine" (Instrumental)  2:02
2. "Taking Back My Soul"  Angela Gossow, M. Amott 4:35
3. "Nemesis"  Gossow 4:12
4. "My Apocalypse"  Gossow 5:25
5. "Carry the Cross"  Gossow 4:12
6. "I Am Legend/Out for Blood"  Gossow 4:58
7. "Skeleton Dance"  Gossow 4:33
8. "Hybrids of Steel" (Instrumental)  3:49
9. "Mechanic God Creation"  Gossow, M. Amott 6:00
10. "Machtkampf"  M. Amott 4:16
11. "Slaves of Yesterday"  Gossow 5:03

Singles

  1. "Nemesis"
  2. "My Apocalypse"
  3. "Taking Back My Soul"

Personnel

Personnel credits adapted from Doomsday Machine album liner notes.[25]

Arch Enemy

Production

Release history

Region Date Label Format
United States July 26, 2005 Century Media Records CD
United Kingdom August 22, 2005 Century Media CD

Charts

Album

Chart (2005) Peak
Position[26][27]
Billboard 200 87
Billboard Top Independent Albums 12
Swedish Album Chart 23
Austrian Album Chart 74

References

  1. ↑ Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Doomsday Machine - Arch Enemy". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  2. ↑ Bergman, Keith. "CD Reviews - Doomsday Machine Arch Enemy". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  3. ↑ Begrand, Adrien. "Arch Enemy: Doomsday Machine". PopMatters. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  4. ↑ Kaiser, Boris. "Rock Hard". issue 220. Retrieved 22 May 2013.
  5. ↑ "SoundScan Report: Arch Enemy, Nevermore, Dope, Flotsam and Jetsam, A Perfect Murder". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. 3 August 2005. Retrieved 11 May 2009.
  6. 1 2 Meeks, Ciaran (August 6, 2005). "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Metal Eater. Archived from the original on October 27, 2005. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
  7. ↑ Begrand, Adrien (August 8, 2005). "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". PopMatters. Archived from the original on August 31, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  8. ↑ Day, Tom (August 22, 2005). "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". musicOMH. Archived from the original on August 31, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  9. ↑ Meentzen, Pal. "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Maelstrom. Archived from the original on August 31, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  10. ↑ Rocker, Evil (November 2005). "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Metal Rules. Archived from the original on September 2, 2011. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  11. ↑ Smit, Jackie (October 17, 2005). "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Chronicles of Chaos. Archived from the original on December 24, 2005. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
  12. ↑ Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Review: Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Allmusic. All Media Guide. Archived from the original on September 1, 2011. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
  13. ↑ Kolman, Tajs (November 3, 2005). "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". RevelationZ Magazine. Archived from the original on October 12, 2006. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  14. ↑ Belcher, Tony. "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Tartarean Desire. Archived from the original on April 3, 2008. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
  15. ↑ Dalakos, Michael (July 21, 2005). "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Metal Temple. Archived from the original on August 31, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  16. ↑ Ralph. "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Lords of Metal. Archived from the original on August 31, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  17. ↑ Jordan, Jason (July 29, 2005). "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Metal Review. Archived from the original on August 31, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  18. ↑ George, Metal (August 2005). "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Metal Rules. Archived from the original on September 2, 2011. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  19. ↑ Pratt, Greg (September 2005). "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on August 31, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  20. ↑ Lee, Cosmo (August 22, 2005). "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on September 15, 2006. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  21. ↑ Bergman, Keith. "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. Archived from the original on September 1, 2011. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
  22. ↑ Donnelly, Justin. "Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine". Blistering. Archived from the original on September 1, 2011. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
  23. ↑ "Metal Storm Awards 2005: The Best Melodeath/Gothenburg Album". Metal Storm. Archived from the original on April 6, 2010. Retrieved September 3, 2011.
  24. ↑ [...], Rock Hard (Hrsg.). [Red.: Michael Rensen. Mitarb.: Götz Kühnemund] (2005). Best of Rock & Metal die 500 stärksten Scheiben aller Zeiten. Königswinter: Heel. p. 18. ISBN 3-89880-517-4.
  25. ↑ Doomsday Machine (Media notes). Arch Enemy. Century Media Records. 2005.
  26. ↑
  27. ↑

External links

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