Whilst I have to admit that these German metallers have somehow slipped under my musical radar, Caliban certainly haven't exactly been idle, with this being the band's eighth album in thirteen years fusing their impressive mix of metalcore, death metal and hardcore.

Since their formation they have shared the stage with such legendary acts as Pantera, Machine Head and Morbid Angel. And any literary experts out there may just recognise the band's moniker as the beast like slave of Prospero from Shakespeare's 'The Tempest.' But enough of the musical history lesson and back to the here and know with the band's latest offering 'I Am Nemesis'.

Kick-starting the album with 'We Are The Many' the band are instantly beating the listener into submission with a ferocious slab of metalcore with a vibe not too dissimilar to Bring Me The Horizon.  Now before any Caliban fans out there take umbrage with my comments I must remind you that behind the hair straighteners and brash cockiness Bring Me The Horizon have delivered two pretty decent metal albums in recent years. The track also featuring a great gung ho chorus courtesy of Mitch (Suicide Silence) and Marcus (Heaven Shall Burn), the latter band also sharing two split albums with Caliban in the past.

Whilst there is no doubt that vocalist Andreas Dorner has a fine set of pipes delivering brutal death metal screams throughout the album it's the tracks 'Memorial' and 'Edge Of Black' along with 'No Tomorrow' featuring the dual vocal styling of deathly growls combined with the melodic vocal style of rhythm guitarist Denis Schmidt that leave more of a lasting impression on me, featuring some great choruses that will instigate some mass singalongs when the band take this album on the road.

My personal favourite track on the album has to be the epic 'Davy Jones' an ambitious number combining the various styling's of the album in the one inspiring track, whether this number was written about the 60's pop combo The Monkee's frontman or the pirate themed Davy Jones locker either way it's definitely a hidden treasure (Every pun intended).

If I was to be asked what makes 'I Am Nemesis' different to other recent metalcore releases then I would have to say "variety" particularly on the track 'The Bogeyman', a track that features electronic samples and strings along with a ghostly organ for great effect. If death metal is more to your metal taste then you won't be disappointed either as the tracks 'Dein R3.Ich' and 'Deadly Dream' are two slabs of bone crushing heavy metal that will pummel you into submission and leave you aching for more.

Caliban may have spent their career in the shadows of their peers but if they continue to produce albums of this quality I believe they will almost certainly rise from the shadows and into the spotlight very soon.

http://calibanmetal.com/

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