Pathogen

Despite the dime-a-dozen mall-core iconography portrayed on the cover of their sophomore album, Pathogen, and the equally incriminating non-image of the bandmembers themselves (they all look like roadies), Poland's Made of Hate subscribe primarily to European metal influences. One says "primarily" because the melodic guitar work and beefy riffs housed in token tracks like "Friend," "I Can't Believe," "Lock'n'Load," and "False Flag" also make room for foreign ingredients like chugging grooves, bruising palm-muted strumming, and bulldog vocals more reminiscent of Noo Yawk hardcore bands like Pro-Pain and Sick of It All. The resulting contrast between Old World music conservatory educations and New World street urchin smarts doesn't always gel (see lopsided efforts like "You, Departed" and "Questions") but is interesting to say the least; just imagine In Flames or Dark Tranquillity jamming with the aforementioned bands, with a little power metal thrown into the mix to boot. So kudos to Made of Hate for trying something different (or accidentally stumbling on something different, in any case) amid a tsunami of metallic repetition. Now, about that cover art....