Fear Factory returns straight to the top with their brutal new offering The Industrialist. The followup to the brilliant 2010 release Mechanize features a diverse assortment of ten powerfully melodic tracks.

Guitarist Dino Cazares’ rapid right hand fires on all cylinders in tandem with well-programmed drums of explosive dynamite (“The Industrialist”). Cazares employs melodic lead subtleties and screaming pinch harmonics, serving as perfect complements to frontman Burton C. Bells’s triumphant choral melodies (“New Messiah,” “Recharger”).

Other tunes delivering the classic Fear Factory fury are “Virus of Faith,” “Depraved Mind Murder,” “Difference Engine,” and “God Eater.” “Difference Engine” contains the fiercest programming of the album, the keys alone erupting into a fiery blast.

The final two tracks “Religion Is Flawed Because…” (great title!) and “Human Augmentation” contain the only moments of the album that fall short on offering greatness; unfortunately these tunes uncharacteristically fade into oblivion, diluting the album a bit with drawn out chordal tones for its final 11 minutes.

Veteran Rhys Fulber tackled production duties once again and additional tracking was provided by the great Logan Mader (Gojira/Divine Heresy/ex-Machine Head).

The Industrialist is a very strong record overall, however, there is certainly a void without Gene Hoglan’s atomic drumming in the mix. All in all, Fear Factory has yet to deliver a less than solid album.