The Generals
Stand up straight
Metalcentral Records

The best way to put a tag on this Swedish quartet is to take Entombed's "To ride, shoot straight and speak the truth" and Dismember's "Massive killing capacity" and fuse the two to create an album that displays the mid-90s death 'n' roll sentiment as expressed by the country's extreme forerunners back then. Both bands have long since left their bop-mosh tendencies to explore different paths (although it was really Entombed's ball, with Dismember lightly toying with the idea amid a more straightforward death metal foundation), essentially leaving a gap in the market for those who fell in love with the style and who strive to make it their own. The Generals manage to pull it off with great conviction, despite not quite achieving the hair-raising impact made by their death metal ancestors. There's one main ingredient here -- the old-school Tomas Skogsberg guitar sound – that elevates this to a status it wouldn't otherwise deserve. It offers what is essentially slightly-above-par songwriting a boost into the realms of acceptance and makes the songs a good deal more enjoyable than if they had some sort of generic death metal tone. That said, the production on here is ever-so-slightly on the wrong side of tinny and it gets a tad annoying after a while. Songwise, it's average with a few shining moments here and there, most notably on their purer death metal moments such as "The offer still stands" and "Consulting with the sinner". Track of the disc must go to "Portal to paradise" though, with its clever use of '80s Sunset Strip hard rock passages that fit so well with the heavier elements that it's a shame The Generals didn't have the foresight to make more use of the amalgam. Overall, "Stand up straight" is a good debut album that shows a wealth of potential, providing the band take the right steps on their next effort.
- John Norby