Disturbed – ‘Immortalized’

At the turn of the century, the nu-metal sub genre appeared seemingly out of nowhere and took the underground world by storm. However as quickly as it rose like a phoenix, it would ultimately fall like a turkey and become a mockery of itself. There would be some bands that would survive the slump, and one of them was Disturbed. A band centred around frontman David Draiman’s “mad man” act, who would transcend the genre and become a Grammy nominated arena rock band, and in 2015 return after a 4-year break with their sixth album ‘Immortalized’.

From the moment the title-track of the album hits, you are immediately in familiar territory, and there is no doubt you are very much listening to a Disturbed record. The instantly recognisable vocal of Draiman is as polished as ever, and is complemented by the thick, palm-muted guitar riffs we have come to expect from Disturbed, but is a world away from the pantomime theatrics of their early work. The quiet/loud dynamic that is applied to lead single ‘The Vengeful One’ is tailor made for the live setting, and as the chorus soars and you can almost hear thousands of voices singing in unison.

While everything has been put into ‘Immortalized’ to ensure it is a meticulously slick, and accomplished album, Disturbed haven’t really moved on and are trying to recreate the dizzying heights they reached on their million-selling album ‘Ten Thousand Fists’. Ten years ago, this would have been seen as an album that pushed them away from a failing genre, but by the time you reach the sickly power-ballad ‘The Light’ the whole thing starts to feel incredibly contrived, and the inclusion of a turgid cover of ‘The Sound Of Silence’ is something that could have been left out altogether.

There are some moments where they do shine with ‘Save Our Last Goodbye’ and ‘Fire It Up’ being vintage Disturbed, and easily match up to the bands extensive back catalogue. It is these moments on ‘Immortalized’ that make it easy to see why Disturbed managed to survive in a market where other bands couldn’t, and the closing track ‘Who Taught You How To Hate’ is a testament to their ability when it comes to writing a textbook rock anthem.

The chances are, that if you are reading this review you are already a Disturbed fan, and will not need reminding of what they sound like. If that is the case, then ‘Immortalized’ is everything you will want it to be. It is probably not going to win Disturbed any new fans, but it certainly won’t make them lose any either.

GLEN BUSHELL