Static-X - Cannibal (Expanded Edition) [Blood & Bronze Splatter]

Blood and bronze splatter vinyl dresses up this expanded edition of Static-X's Cannibal, complete with a gatefold sleeve and an extra track bolted onto the original running order.

Released in 2007, the fifth studio album marked a deliberate return to the punishing sound of the band's early records, and Wayne Static called it the most metal record they had ever made. Original guitarist Koichi Fukuda was back as a full-time member, the screams returned in force and producer John Travis gave everything a harder, drier bite. It was also the first Static-X album to feature guitar solos, one on nearly every song, adding a flash of metal virtuosity to the band's industrial machinery.

The title track opens with a relentless, mechanical stomp, and guest guitarist John 5 takes its first solo. Destroyer pairs a chugging, robotic riff with one of the catchiest choruses on the record, while Reptile is a gleefully gruesome tale of being eaten alive by a giant lizard. The bonus song Light It Up adds one more blast at the end of a set that never lets up across its short, sharp running time.

Fans often rank it alongside Machine as the band's heaviest work. Played loud, it still sounds like a factory floor that has decided to fight back.