It breaks my heart to give negative feedback to any band from Finland, the land of metal where some of the most glorious bands are born. It is especially sad when the band has a really neat modern vibe and a woman harsh vocalist, you don't see that too often, and it's commendable. But, sadly, the second full length offering from Finnish melodic death metallers EVIL DRIVE doesn't do much to set itself apart from the crowd. Relative to where the genre is today, the excitingly titled "Ragemaker" is ultimately derivative and reminiscent of where the genre was 10 years ago, as opposed to now. The talent is all there, but the writing is cookie cutter, dry, unoriginal, and it's topped off with poor production, particularly on the vocals.

It all is performed well, from a technical standpoint, but it does not mesh together. The layers clash, and it is not appealing to the ear. The vocals take a back seat and are drowned out by the instrumentals, and the drums actually steal the show. That's kind of cool in it's own way, but not the most ideal sound you want in melodic death metal. The vocals being difficult to pick out is probably the most disappointing aspect of the album, especially when front woman Viktoria Viren is such a focal part of the band. Not only would I love more volume on her parts, blended in with the instrumentals, but they would also benefit from adding more layers and texture with backing vocal parts. It's a painfully unimaginative sound, and with a lineup this promising, that is a let down.

Intro instrumental track "Intro (The Rage Is Rising)" sets the album up, and unfortunately provides a perfect example of what holds the album back: the boring songwriting. It's nothing we haven't heard before, it doesn't push the genre forward in the slightest, and ultimately does exactly the opposite of hyping up the rest of the album. Tracks 2 and 3 "Anti-Genocide" and "The System Is Dead" try their best to provide pulsating fast paced riffs to kick the album off to an exciting start, but are ultimately formulaic. They also find a very thrashy and hollow sound, which feels out of place in an era where metal is driven by a solid foundation of bass and production, even in MDM.

There aren't many standout songs, it's just one track after the other of textbook riffs that aren't bad, but aren't anything interesting or new. To their credit, they do try to create some layer of texture throughout the album. Track 5 "Legends Never Die" features clean vocals which was a pleasant surprise and showcases Viren's ability, and track 9 "Run Through The Dark" is a melancholic and slower ballad type song with a relaxing groove and chunk to it that nicely sets up the end of the album and unrelenting closer "Killed By Death," a MOTÖRHEAD cover.

The reality is this: this is not a bad album. It is a disappointingly boring and unoriginal one. It has all the same problems that were displayed on their debut effort, with no fixes or steps forward. That being said, EVIL DRIVE has assembled all the right talent, and they have a cool vibe and fantastic front woman. They are young and I'm sure have no plans of slowing down, so I excitedly await their future efforts and hope to see them step out of their comfort zone and take some risks with new sounds.