Band:	Mecalimb
Album:	Mechanical Recipe
Style:	Thrash metal
Release date:	2009

01. Still Alive
02. In Tragedy
03. One Blood
04. Be Like Me
05. Fly Away
06. Broken Brain
07. Rise
08. Unspoken Words
09. Sacrifice For Life
10. Fighter [demo 2006 bonus]

Mecalimb are a young band from Norway. The metal they play is quite thrashy, with a heavy In Flames influence. So let's consider it something like 'modern thrash', just to say it has no old-school feel. The album itself features seven brand-new songs recorded in 2008, two older ones, and the last track ("Fighter") comes straight from their first demo.

This album is really catchy, starting directly with a heavy riff. And then, the pressure is constant, there's no escape; the songs are short and to the point, powerful, and the tempi varies enough from song to song so that we never get bored.

The musicianship? Good, without doubts. One of the greatest strength of this release is certainly the amount of good riffs: there are plenty of those on this Mechanical Recipe; the solos aren't to shame either ("Broken Brain"). The rythmics are good and powerful, and there's even a bass solo on "Still Alive". The drumming is precise, but it lacks some edge due to the mix. The vocals are good, even if some of the clean ones do sound a bit lame and lack of power ("Still Alive").

I was mentioning earlier the In Flames influence: you can find it mostly in the "clean" vocals, the rhythmic structure of the songs, and also in the mix, reminiscent of Soundtrack To your Escape. Ah, the mix... It has some flaws, as mentioned earlier, but I found it quite enjoyable anyway. However, if you had issues with the aforementioned In Flames album's sound, you'll maybe have difficulties with this one too.

This album is released on the band's own label (Mechanical records); it shows they're just beginning, as it's all printed in black and white (and shades of grey). But who cares about the bottle anyway, as long as we get drunk?

While not groundbreaking (it's difficult in this scene), I really enjoyed this album. As a first album, it sure shows place for improvement, but that will hopefully be what we'll get on their second release. Mecalimb certainly deserve a good recognition, as they know how to write great thrashy riffs and good, catchy songs. And that is no mere feat.