Killswitch Engage's twin: Mercenary (Denmark): "Through Our Darkest Days"

For practical purposes, dear reader, I will assume that you have heard the most recent Killswitch Engage. I also assume that if a person does not enjoy the sounds of Killswitch Engage, then that person stopped reading this review as soon as they saw the name.

Mercenary is no Killswitch Engage rip off, however. Mercenary's debut was published in 1998, in addition to demos in 1993, 1994 and an EP in 1998. So, including this album, Mercenary now has 7 studio albums.

Mercenary does play melodic growl metal, and on this album they sound very much like a band ready to gain new listeners from the crowds that like Killswitch Engage and All That Remains.

Mercenary means: growl-shout vocals; melodic singing; catchy-poppy energy; chugging guitar moments; melodic solos and hooks; professionalism; slick, clicky computerized drum sound; so and so forth.

As I have pointed out, Mercenary, as a sound, has been around for a while. Thus, this album is a professional recording, on a level with the bigger names in this subgenre. The production is very "modern" and all those things that fans of this music expect.

In short, Mercenary has turned every stone to deliver the type of album that fans and followers of this subgenre love. If you did enjoy Killswitch Engage's recent album a whole lot, I would imagine that you would enjoy the level of professionalism and catchiness in Mercenary.

Speaking more subjectively, I especially do not like that flat drum sound that so many bands use, and I think it would be better to use a more natural sound, something that sounds like real drums.

www.mercenary.dk