For all intents and purposes Nothingface have been dormant to the public eye since the release of 2000's "Violence" and the subsequent tours that followed it. But while the band may not have been soaking up the limelight for the past year or two, their excessive downtime seems to have been put to good use as it is inherently apparent upon the first listen of "Skeletons", the bands latest opus. A sinister barrage of modern metal that tackles many of society's recent darker events, this record literally seethes with rage, introspection and socially aware lyrical content that feels as though it was thoroughly stewed in a pot of the bands own anger and frustrations.

Band frontman Matt Holt has never been one to shy away from visceral lyrical content, but on "Skeletons" his incessant verbal wrath now has highly visible targets from organized religion all the way to the situation in the Middle East. As such it seems that this intent focus has let him sculpt his words into the role of an overseer rather than another bleeding heart or pissed off punk kid. Lyrics aside though, his delivery is also at its most melodic yet, complimenting the bands new found grasp on explosive dynamic shifts - a number of which literally punctuate this record from start to finish. Like a bitter emotional struggle conveyed through abrasive riffs and screams that are summarily matched by mellow wails and drawn out harmonies, "Skeletons" comes off as a fierce yet remorseful record which expresses confusion, anger and angst in one crushing deathblow.

Perhaps their closest peers in this spectrum of the metal world nowadays are Mudvayne as both bands share a wealth of similar aspects. But where mathematics, sci-fi and technical wizardry are key components of the latter, Nothingface instead unleash brute force and searing intensity that undertakes a much more twisted and depraved feel. With that being said though, many of the bands diehard fans feel that their 1998 release "An Audio Guide To Everyday Atrocity" was their high watermark and "Skeletons" isn't likely to change that as it is perhaps the bands most accessible offering yet. But while it may not be as purely rooted in the metal ways as that powerhouse of an album was, it still has enough tangible aggression and outright aural violence to appeal to the metal crowd of today, proving to be a progressive and solid offering from a band who aren't about to pigeonhole themselves yet.