CHIMAIRA “The Infection” /Ltd. Edition Digipack CD + DVD/

The fifth full-length album by the American Groove/Post-Thrash Metal/Metalcore band.
Opening with an ominous, semi-epic instrumental the passage, the album aims and fires without much apprehension. With 10 tracks, the guarantee of all killer, no filler is one that can easily be made. Cleveland's Chimaira have always knocked on the door of mainsteam Metal success that has been opened by the likes of Killswitch Engage, Lamb of God and As I Lay Dying, but the six-piece has never fully entered the room and crashed the party. There's no real reason for that, as the band is deft with manufacturing Metal songs that are raw enough to chafe the first layer of cells from your skin. The guitar work is good. The screaming is good. The drumming is, and we mean no offense to those who are heavily medicated or institutionalized, f**king insane; it's the anchor of "The Infection", with it's super-precise patterns. "The Infection" is easily the band's most brutal album to date; the opening salvo, "The Venom Inside", is slightly blackened, while "Frozen in Time" is threaded with an ever-so-subtle keyboard melody that is often reserved for European Metal bands. About three minutes into this song, there's a haunting, creeky part that will make the baby fine hairs on your spine stand on end; it's creepy, eerie and thoroughly Metallic. Chimaira are throwing everything, including the kitchen sink, into their sonic stew and the band ends up with a Blackened and Deathy American Metal record that should shut the mouths of naysayers who tried to classify Chimaira as Nu Metal in the past.
Guitarists Rob Arnold and Matt DeVries prove to be a formidable tandem on "The Infection", which is driven by both Slayer and classic Metallica-influenced riffs. It's as though every member of Chimaira stepped up to the plate and knocked it outta the park when it came to writing and playing their parts on the album. Hunter's ferocious; drummer Andols Herrick is a machine holding down the rhythm section with Jim LaMarca; Arnold and DeVries squeeze out riffs that could cut plate glass; and Chris Spicuzza, who handles the electronics, has enhanced the record with his touches and flourishes in more obvious, audible ways than ever before. Check about four minutes and beyond of "Secrets of the Dead" for a real taste of what Spicuzza adds to Chimaira's overall sound!
Chimaira have gotten more Metal with age and this is one "The Infection" you'll want to succumb to!!
Album reached position 30 on the Billboard 200 charts on its first week of release, selling around 15,000 copies. This was improvement from the previous album's debut at No. 42. It is also their last album to feature long time bassist Jim Lamarca, drummer Andols Herrick, as well as longtime keyboard player Chris Spicuzza and guitarist Matt DeVries.
This limited edition includes bonus track “Revenge” as well as bonus DVD with 48 min. “Making of…”
Nuclear Blast GmbH, 2009 (NB 2335-0). Made in Germany. First press.


Tracklist:

CD:
1. The Venom Inside     4:05 
2. Frozen In Time     4:05 
3. Coming Alive     3:04 
4. Secrets Of The Dead     4:24 
5. The Disappearing Sun     4:24 
6. Impending Doom     6:05 
7. On Broken Glass     3:46 
8. Destroy And Dominate     4:42 
9. Try To Survive     4:40 
10. The Heart Of It All     14:20 
Bonus Tracks:
11. Warpath     4:18

DVD:
The Making Of "The Infection"

Total playing time: 57:53