Back in the '80s, there was very little cross-pollination of metal styles. Fast forward 20 years, and it's the complete opposite -- it's hard to find a metal band that has not let another style infiltrate their sound. Case in point, the Swedish quintet
By Night, who combines hardcore vocals and riffing along with drumming in the industrial/robotic mode. Although comparisons to
Fear Factory are sure to come up,
By Night's hardcore influence manages to separate the two (hardcore never figured into
Fear Factory's sound or approach, which was always more metallic). And while
By Night should be commended for keeping the intensity pretty darn steady throughout
New Shape of Desperation, little variation leads to it being hard to differentiate the tracks after a while, as evidenced by the likes of "People Like You" and "Through Ashes We Crawl." ~ Greg Prato