Holographic Universe [Slipcase] (CD - 2008)

Personnel: Christian Alverstam, Christian Älvestam (vocals); Jonas Kjellgren, Per Nilsson (guitar, guitars); Kenneth Seil (bass guitar); Henrik Ohlsson (drums).

Audio Mixer: Jonas Kjellgren.

Recording information: Black Lounge Studios, Avesta, Sweden (12/03/2007-02/03/2008).

Photographer: Olle Carlsson.

To the layperson, "complex and intelligent" may not be what comes to mind when someone mentions death metal, but then those people have probably never heard Scar Symmetry. Their third album, HOLOGRAPHIC UNIVERSE, manages to push both the heaviness and the melodic content of previous releases even further, showcasing smarter songwriting without sacrificing the crunch. By incorporating cookie monster vocals with more operatically sung techniques, Scar Symmetry has the best of both worlds. Epics such as the massive "Artificial Sun Projection" have more in common with Dream Theater than with Morbid Angel, but they still open up the throttle on a track like "The Missing Coordinates." minimize