Review PAIN “I am”

Peter Tägtgren has been proving that pain isn’t necessarily a bad thing since 1996. That was the year in which the Hypocrisy mastermind started Pain as a one-man project, and what developed from that is a band that has released eight longplayers, while number nine is waiting in the starting blocks.

Eight years after the release of “Coming Home”, Pain returns with an album called “I am”. With eleven songs, Tägtgren offers a lot of great music that reflects the typical trademarks of the band. Synth-supported, hard-hitting metal with industrial elements is what bursts out of the speakers and challenges your ear-drums in a positive way.

The beginning of “I am” goes back to the year 2021. The world was in a lockdown and isolation was what everyone had to deal with. Along with a big question mark about how things will move forward, the world was a strange place. It was time for some positivity and happiness to shine through and it was the right moment for “Party in My Head”. The danceable and very melodic song came at the right time and marked the starting point for the new album.

While “Party in My Head” was the first hit from “I am”, “Go With The Flow” followed a few weeks ago. The song features the typical Pain signature and has a dark and gothic vibe, especially in the chorus.
After “Go With the Flow”, “Don’t Wake the Dead” follows on the track list. The latter was written by Tägtgren’s son Sebastian, who also plays drums for Pain. The second song written by Sebastian Tägtgren is “Revolution”, which is much harder than “Don’t Wake the Dead”. “Revolution” is a furious and straightforward song that belongs to the harder ones on the album, also but not only because of Peter Tägtgren’s screams. The chorus stays melodic though, which doesn’t take away from the overall heaviness.

“Not For Sale” is a typical Pain anthem with a hammering beat, while the title track follows a more atmospheric approach and is surprisingly calm and dark. A pounding beat is what pushes “Push the Pusher”, a great song that will certainly do a great job in the setlist for future live shows.

The gritty vibe returns with “My Angel” and it is the slower paced “Fair Game” that marks the end of a great new Pain release.

“I am” became the expected superb new album from Pain. Peter Tägtgren once again shows why the band has become a long-lasting player in the field of industrial and electro-driven metal. Pain is Tägtgren’s outlet for melodic and danceable songs that have a blueprint for future hits with “Party in My Head”. This album proves – ‘pain’ can be fun and entertaining.