Product Description

Roadrunner Records continues to make a strong case for the longevity of nu-metal with SELF-DESTRUCTIVE PATTERN, Spineshank's third full-length. With a relentless, grooving brutality not unlike Pantera, and the industrial grind of Ministry,the Ozzfest veterans have upped the ante by injecting more clean vocals to their sound (perhaps taking a cue from bandssuch as Opeth and Disturbed).
"Violent Mood Swings" and "Slavery" open the set with unforgiving intensity. "Smothered" and "Self-Destructive Pattern" boast some catchy vocal melodies and more mature song structures that could be compared to later-era Fates Warning. Crack producer GGGartH (Catherine Wheel, Downthesun) dials in sparkling crunch and sample-driven futuristic sheen, resulting in a very contemporary and polished production.

Track Listing

1. Violent Moodswings
2. Slavery
3. Smothered
4. Consumed (Obsessive Compulsive)
5. Beginning Of The End
6. Forgotten
7. Self-Destructive Pattern
8. Tear Me Down
9. Stillborn
10. Falls Apart
11. Fallback
12. Dead To Me

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10537 in Music
• Released on: 2003-07-14
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Enhanced, Explicit Lyrics

Amazon.co.uk Review
For Self-Destructive Pattern, Spineshank have moved on from 2001's The Height of Callousness and mostly ditched their head-spinning electronics, replacing them with a raft of high-quality vocal melodies sure to make their second album a major hit. The opening "Violent Mood Swings" and "Slavery", both featuring heavy-duty riffing and a shredded grunt of a vocal, lead directly into a frenetic run of top class modern metal, the briefest of gaps between tracks giving the listener no time to catch breath. "Smothered", "Consumed", "Beginning of the End" and "Forgotten" are all misanthropic anthems, bludgeoning but tuneful enough to have you thinking of a hi-octane (and homicidal) Journey.

From here on, it becomes ever more aggressive, with Tommy Decker's occasional thrilling effects buried beneath the noise as singer Jonny Santos's over-riding sense of bitterness and paranoia takes over. This is the album's main problem. Spineshank have it in them to produce serious-minded melodic metal to rival the best of Alice in Chains yet are held back by Santos's tediously blinkered worldview. On Planet Santos everyone is out trick, blame, sedate or ruin him and he's thoroughly peeved about it, so peeved that he allows his lyrics to become a monotonous and graceless diatribe, meaningless to anyone outside his immediate circle. Let's hope it was cathartic, for Spineshank have huge potential. --Dominic Wills

Customer Reviews

Excellent improvement on the last album
This album is definitely an improvement on the last album, and for some reason seems to sound "cleaner" than their previous one. That is to say, the screaming, roaring vocals in the last album are still loud and angry, but seem clearer and more distinct and thus are more powerful. The instrumental is as explosive as ever, and they can get the blood moving like few other bands. The best track on the album is "Beginning of the End", and some of the other tracks seem to have a mysterious resemblance to the tracks on the previous album, especially the intro sections of the tracks. This suggests the band have seen the flaws in the previous album, and used them as a spine from which to improve them. This band's sound is very much an acquired taste, so unless you are a genuine fan of very angry lyrics and ear drum shattering instrumentals, give this a miss. But if you like these things, then this is definitely for you.

nu metal that still sounds fresh
nu metal is more or less dead and that is something of a relief,like most i was drawn in by it somewhat and i am left with a good few nu metal albums that just dont sound as cracking anymore although i wouldnt part with them.spineshank have released three fine albums and this is their latest one albeit its a few years old now but it still sounds pretty fresh and its filled with nu metal beats and poppy enough chorus' to keep us all happy.
self destructive pattern starts off with the cracking violent moodswings which is as heavy a song as you may find in the nu metal family,it has the trademark heavy,light,heavy light formula and is a good album opener.songs like smothered and dead to me continue the strong riffs and melodic chorus,there are some very laid back songs on here which again was the nu metal formula,songs such as beginning of the end demonstrate what i mean,all in all its an album you can throw on and still enjoy,it can bring a smile to your face as you remember the good old nu metal days,well only if you want to remember them!

5 out of 5 what a suprise
When I bought this album I was first dissapointed, cos i had heard ``Smothered'' song on TV and loved it, but realised the other songs were a bit different. But this is a grower, songs such as ``Forgotten'',``Fallback'' and ``Beginning of the end''
show the lighter and pleasant side of the band, yet ``Violent moodwings'' and ``Dead to me'' really kick your arse.
This is recommended on many levels and is even catchier than ``Linkin Park'' Screaming and Singing has never been so better.