I was given five tracks to take a listen to from Fatal Thirteen’s latest album Audio Bloodshow. From the moment the first track “American Monster” began, I was sucked back in time to the year 2000. Fatal Thirteen’s sound is definitely reminiscent of Nu Metal and serves as a reminder of why Nu Metal is no longer around.
Firstly, they almost seem to take the songs of Rob Zombie or Powerman 5000 and make them their own. Each song, as I went through them, sounded exactly as the one before it. The vocals are weak and basic, showing no emotional inflection by either of the frontmen, Menace and Big G Crazy. With lyrics like “welcome to the gates of hell I hope you’re ready to die, never gonna get away blood is raining from the sky” it’s hard to imagine that any creativity went into the songwriting process.
I crossed my fingers in hopes that the band would redeem themselves as the song “Symbol of The Underworld” started: the song pounds and drives at the beginning, the drums are flawless and the composition almost gets you amped up. Almost. The vocals and lyrics once again kill it for me. The simplicity and repetition of the band’s songwriting, along with their horror themed, mask wearing gimmick just proves furthermore that they lack musicianship.
The one redeeming quality I found here was the production of the songs. The sound quality is excellent and professional. It’s hard to record drums as well as these guys have done it. Bravo on sound quality and production. If you’re feeling nostalgic for some late 90’s or early 2000’s Nu Metal or you have an angry teenager, then Fatal Thirteen is definitely something worth checking out.
Stevie Kopas, HMS
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