Mendeed
The Dead Live by Love

March 2007
Released: 2007, Nuclear Blast Records
Rating: 3.0/5
Reviewer: Luxi Lahtinen

Mendeed did it indeed (doesn´t that rhyme, or what, ha!). These relatively young English metallers 2nd full-lenght album, titled kinda oddly THE DEAD LIVE BY LOVE – at the same time being their debut on a major metal label, Nuclear Blast Records, could be said, sounds at least, eh! ...´interesting´. I mean, it´s like listening to Children of Bodom here that have adopted some ´nu-metal´ slices from here and there into their sound. Thank God, those ´nu-metal´ influences play only a very minor role in Mendeed´s music these days. Read from somewhere they changed their musical orientation rather drastically since the release of their first 4-song EP, KILLING SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL. Probably any wiser move they hardly could have possibly made...



However, the band´s latest outing THE DEAD LIVE... ain´t that bad as one might suspiciously think at first. There´s a lot of sheer talent behind this combo; in fact, the guys even tend to sound quite damn phenomenal at places, like sort of racing with each other who can churn out the most kick-ass and fastest stuff, produced through each of their individual instruments when playing together. For the band´s advantage it must be confessed they sound occasionally even better than, let´s say, the Bodoms on their last album - but then again, do we really need another Bodom -clone band? No, I don´t think so because that certain ´bodomesque´ -style has been imitated several times already by a good number of bands. Now I naturally am starting to hear from the angry and insulted fans of the band there´s a lot of more other influences in the sound of Mendeed than just plain Bodom-copycatting. Sure, there may be indeed... at least if their bio is something to go by (they mention bands from Slayer to Iron Maiden to Lamb of God to In Flames, etc. as their main influences, just in case if you became any curious?). However, to me they do sound heavily being influenced by C.o.B., and I bet for many others, too. Why should this fact be either ignored - or even denied completely? Well, it shouldn´t. Therefore Mendeed´s new album THE DEAD..., only managed to leave me ´so-so´ -feeling about them. They are a bunch of talented players - no doubts about that, but unfortunately that just isn´t always enough especially when you shamelessly tend to plagiarize some other band the best you can. C.o.B. have already patented their own trademark´ish sound for some years ago already, so the Mendeed -dudes cannot take out a proper patent out for it any longer. Sorry guys, but you are helplessly way too late.