Nightrage - A New Disease Is Born

The melodic death metal band Nightrage has gone through some significant changes. Gone are guitarist Gus G (Firewind), who was a founding member, vocalist Tomas Lindberg (At The Gates) and drummer Fotis Benardo. They've regrouped with new vocalist Jimmie Strimell and new drummer Alex Svenningson and they've signed to a new record label.

Even with those wholesale changes, A New Disease Is Born is a solid album. Without Gus G the guitar work is not as dazzling, but it is still very good. Nightrage has also added a bit more melody to their melodic death metal sound. There are some really memorable riffs and hooks, but there is still plenty of brutality.

Strimell's vocals are a combination of harsh yells and melodic singing. His extreme style vocals are fierce without being monotonous. The melodic singing isn't great, but it is decent. Jacob Hansen (Hatesphere, Mercenary) produces, and he does his usual excellent job, giving the album a crisp and balanced sound. Even though they've gone through a ton of personnel changes, Nightrage proves with their third album that they've just getting started.