martindavey87 Clawfinger’s 1997 self-titled third album sees the band return to form after a rather average follow-up to their debut. While ‘Deaf Dumb Blind’ gave the Swedish rap-rockers some miner mainstream success and publicity, they mostly remained an obscure, unknown entity, especially with constantly shifting music trends. But then, since when has a band like Clawfinger cared about music trends?

Packed full of aggressive, non-stop rapid-fire lyrics and energetic, grooving and pumping guitar riffs, ‘Clawfinger’ is a shot of adrenaline that doesn’t give up until the closing moments of the album. Tackling the usual issues of politics, socialism, relationships and religion, the band is relentless and completely unapologetic in getting their message across. And it’s this tongue-in-cheek attitude that makes them so endearing.

The band has taken a huge step forward here in regards to song writing. Their lyrics are a lot more mature, and the music is much more polished, with more electronic and industrial influences, as well as Middle Eastern sounding phrases and female vocals too. Closing track ‘I Guess I’ll Never Know’ reflects on a friend who had committed suicide, and is incredibly sad and melancholic, with vocalist Zak Tell ditching the rapping for singing. Lines such as “with so much love around you I just wish you loved yourself” shows a group that have a lot more depth and meaning than simply lashing out at governments and social issues.

With highlights including ‘Two Sides’, ‘I’m Your Life & Religion’, ‘Not Even You’, ‘Biggest & The Best’, ‘Chances’, ‘Wrong State of Mind’ and the aforementioned closing track, ‘Clawfinger’ sees the band back on top form with another dose of high-quality, hard-hitting rap metal.

martindavey87 1995’s ‘Use Your Brain’ is the second album by Swedish rap rockers Clawfinger. It follows in the same vein as its predecessor, ‘Deaf Dumb Blind’, with similar compositions and a nearly identical sound, but it seems to lack the same youthful exuberance that made the latter such an engaging listen.

Mixing rapping vocals with metal guitar riffs long before the likes of Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park gained worldwide fame, Clawfinger’s groove-laden music has always been about uncompromising, in-your-face attitude. With a dirty, gritty sound, and lyrics that spit in the face of political correctness, they’ve never been afraid to put themselves on the line.

Utilizing simple, yet striking guitar work with electronic samples, the band have an effective and fairly distinctive sound. Vocalist Zak Tell’s rapid fire delivery, which blends rapping with hardcore and punk rock elements, goes well with the music, and certainly paints a picture of an angry and frustrated band.

But unfortunately, ‘Use Your Brain’ just simply isn’t as good as the band’s debut. While it’s not a bad album, ‘Deaf Dumb Blind’ was consistently strong throughout, while here, we’re treated to a few moments of sheer genius being smothered by an abundance of filler material. But despite the weaker tracks, songs like ‘Power’, ‘Die High’, ‘Do What I Say’ and ‘Pay the Bill’ are all strong enough to stand next to anything the band have done before, and are all good reasons to at least give this album a chance.

martindavey87 The early 90's saw an influx of bands that were blending rock and metal with hardcore and hip-hop influences. Rage Against the Machine were probably the most commercially successful, but there were a number of bands around the world that were also making contributions, such as Stuck Mojo and Body Count from the United States, H-Blockx from Germany, and one of the lesser known pioneers of what would come to be known as "rap metal", Sweden's Clawfinger.

While Clawfinger's music is fairly straightforward, it's the uncompromising attitude of the band, and in particular, the unsparing lyrics of vocalist Zak Tell, that makes them so endearing. The songs are energetic, with some simple yet infectious guitar riffs that aren't overly flashy but are enough to get heads banging. And Tell may not be a legit "rapper" by any stretch, but his hardcore-inspired style gives the music the exact grittiness and rawness it needs.

The lyrics are fairly cheesy at times, spouting out the usual anti-governmental hip-hop clichés that lambast war, racism, corruption, and society in general, but they're also sincere and catchy, and at times show a group that aren't afraid to be a little tongue-in-cheek. And in all fairness, the rapid-fire rhymes are actually fairly impressive when you consider that English isn't the groups first language.

'Deaf Dumb Blind' is a solid debut by Clawfinger, and while this type of music may not appeal to everyone, standout songs such as 'The Truth', 'Don't Get Me Wrong', 'Warfair', 'Rosegrave', 'I Need You' and the awkwardly titled 'Nigger' are all perfect examples of why rap metal shouldn't be so casually ignored.