Fear Factory

Despite all of the drama surrounding the members of Fear Factory and the debate over the band name, Mechanize is one hell of a comeback album. The revamped FF features vocalist Burton C. Bell back together again with original guitarist Dino Cazares after an eight-year falling out. With the addition of bassist Byron Stroud, who played on the previous two FF releases, and legendary drummer Gene Hoglan, FF have created a new album to be reckoned with. Bell's distinct vocals and Cazares's refreshingly innovative guitar work make for FF's best release since 2001's Digimortal and proves that Bell and Cazares are the heart and soul of the band. "Fear Campaign," "Powershifter" and "Controlled Demolition" are some of the most powerful tracks on the album, which evoke that raw aggression found on 1992's Soul of a New Machine and 1995's Demanufacture. Mechanize has that same FF sound, but with much better, and distinguished, guitar work than in recent years. Clearly Cazares has been the band's missing link and let's all thank our lucky stars that he's back.