The outfit from Chicago has had some rough times in the past, and was already very close to calling it quits till an appearance (“Death Stalker” from Modern World) on a sampler CD basically saved them. Relatively quickly after that, Metal Blade added Rival to their already pretty impressive roster and the rest is history. And even though I had a hard time getting into this disc, in the end Rival managed to win me over with their in-your-face metal.

My biggest problem with Rival was stemming from the clean vocals of John Johnson. I somehow had serious problems accepting the fact that aggressive metal doesn’t need screams nor grunts to sound good. Furthermore, I was of the opinion that State Of Mind is slightly overproduced with an overly clean sound. Luckily, for me and for Rival, I always listen dozens of times to a new album before I even start thinking of writing a review, and during one of those dozens of spins, something just clicked in my head and State Of Mind had me in its grip.

Right now, I can safely say that the clean vocals combined with the very clean production make perfect sense. Rival have created a sound that is definitely their own, as well as strong songs that slowly but steadily get you hooked. Good melodies, good lead breaks, and above all excellent driving riffs that drip with intensity like venom from a viper’s fang.

These guys from Chicago have delivered a CD that sounds very mature and harkens back to the eighties, albeit with a more modern approach.

Strangely enough, especially compared to other current releases, Rival have not fallen to the temptation to squeeze all the good tracks in the beginning; an approach that usually results in lack of interest during the latter parts and an album that quickly gets forgotten. On the contrary, State Of Mind ends a whole lot better than it starts and goes out with a bang, called “Hell Train”. This is definitely the best song, aggressive as hell and straight to the point - no nonsense metal. A good climax after the slow semi-ballad “Remember You” and the melodic “Lord Of The Knights”. Yeah, these last three definitely leave a mark, and leave you hungry for more.

State Of Mind is an album that might appeal to everyone who likes old school metal and although you might have to get used to modern approach, or the clean vocals, in the end Rival will win you over, I can guarantee you that. This album is like a good wine, and gets better with age. My only real complaint: it is way too short, a mere half hour is pretty much outrageous. Oh well, you can’t have it all, and luckily (as the disc goes once more full circle) State Of Mind weathers the repeat function very well indeed.