It has been 21 years since Fear Factory unleashed its racket, which has over time become a major influence on the landscape of American metal. It has also, in a bizarre
manner, mirrored corporate America in the mentality that the band is
first and foremost a business. While undergoing lineup changes in the
form of infrastructural decisions/layoffs and pursuing different angles
to songwriting as paradigm shifts, the band has yielded seven
full-length albums. Through it all, founding member and machine-gun
riffer Dino Cazares still fits within the entity. Evil corporation comparisons
aside, the above video for new track "Fear Campaign" shows that Fear Factory still brings the metal to the masses.
Hot on the release of Mechanize, the band's live engagements run
the gamut of death, groove, thrash, and alternative metal with a solid
technical eye for industrial elements that have garnered legions of fans
from different scenes. Anyone looking for a particular FF era will not
be disappointed by the set list. Also in tow will be the deathcore of
Winds of Plague (facemasks optional), ex-Broken Hope and SOiL member Shaun Glass' Dirge Within, and Maryland's
progressive metalheads Periphery, who'll drop their debut album April
10. A solid and well-rounded metal feast.
Fear Factory, with Winds of Plague, Dirge Within, and Periphery. 7 p.m.
Tuesday, March 30, at the Culture Room, 3045 N. Federal Highway, Fort
Lauderdale. Tickets cost $29.99. 954-564-1074; click here.