Deadlock
Bizarro World

March 2011
Released: 2011, Lifeforce Records
Rating: 3.0/5
Reviewer: Robert Williams

BIZARRO WORLD marks the fifth full length effort from German melo-deathsters Deadlock. BIZARRO WORLD is a concept album, centered around the "Bizarro" ideology of a "weirdly mutilated version of anything" as first introduced in the 1960's through DC Comics.



"Virus Jones" kicks off this conceptual affair with mid-tempo progressive palm muted riffing, before transitioning into a half-time romp accented by the serene female vocals of Ms. Sabine Weniger who offers up a total juxtaposition to the throaty shouts of vocalist Johannes Prem. Sabine, who started in Deadlock as a session member, today plays a much more prominent role in the band, as demonstrated on "State Of Decay" a track she leads alongside weirdo electronica noises. "Falling Skywards" abruptly begins with furious drumming and throaty screams, hitting head on come chorus time with Sabine's clean vocals. This is pretty strange stuff. Bizarre even.



The lead vocal trade offs continue on the balladesque "You Left Me Dead" and the amped up and aggressive "Brutal Romance" to mixed results. I think this formula works well on some songs, and takes the power out of the punch on others. I do give the band bonus points for not conforming to the Nightwish archetype of female fronted bands, instead opting for uncharted waters. Having said that, not too sure how often I'd care to take a dip in those waters.



The production on BIZARRO WORLD was handled by Deadlock guitarist Sebastian Reichl, who had the unenviable task of dealing with everything from guitar, bass and drums to synthesizers and multiple vocalists. The end result sounds slick enough and only time will tell if this type of stuff will catch on with the rest of the world. I gotta say, it kind of left me scratching my head.