''The Scars Between Us'' is the fourth full-length album by American

groove metal Groove metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that began in the early 1990s. The genre achieved success in the 1990s and continued having success in the 2000s. Inspired by thrash metal and traditional heavy metal, groove metal features raspy ...

band

Skinlab Skinlab is an American heavy metal band formed in 1994 in San Francisco, California by vocalist/bassist Steev Esquivel (who used to sing in the Bay Area thrash metal band Defiance), guitarist Mike Roberts (now with San Francisco Bay Area's R ...

. It was released September 15, 2009, seven years after the band's previous studio album.

Track listing

# "Face of Aggression" - 3:44 # "Amphetamine Gods" - 3:22 # "Scream at the World" - 5:44 # "Wolvesblood" - 3:24 # "Karma Burns" - 6:46 # "In for the Kill" - 4:19 # "Paper Trails" - 5:55 # "Still Suffering" - 4:42 # "Bloodclot" - 1:56 # "My Vendetta" - 5:01 # "The Scars Between Us" - 5:35

Critical reception

Reviews of the album ranged from negative to mixed.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

gave a mixed review, classifying the songs as technically competent but unoriginal

nu metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, sometimes called aggro-metal) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop, alternative rock, funk, industrial, and grunge. Nu met ...

tracks with far too long a run-time. There were also accusations that

riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompani ...

s had gone far past being influenced and outright impersonated various major bands such as

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

and

Machine Head A machine head (also referred to as a tuning machine, tuner, or gear head) is a geared apparatus for tuning stringed musical instruments by adjusting string tension. Machine heads are used on mandolins, guitars, double basses and others, and ar ...

MetalSucks MetalSucks is a heavy metal music-themed news website. The site features reviews, interviews, information on latest metal releases and blog-like posts from the writers, most notably Vince Neilstein and Axl Rosenberg. History The site was foun ...

gave a negative review, again criticising the lack of originality and flagrant impersonations. The review also criticised the loss of

groove Groove or Grooves may refer to: Music * Groove (music) * Groove (drumming) * The Groove (band), an Australian rock/pop band of the 1960s * The Groove (Sirius XM), a US radio station * Groove 101.7FM, a former Perth, Australia, radio station * ...

seen in the band's early work, leading to a general dullness in a number of songs.

Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...

also gave a mixed reception of the review, judging it "moderately interesting" but once again criticised the lack of originality.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scars Between Us 2009 albums Skinlab albums