Album of the Week 28-2026: Lynch. – Climax

When lynch. released its previous album ‘Reborn‘, it completely blew me away. At the time, I blamed it on every band member contributing to the songwriting, until then typically the job of singer Hazuki and – to a lesser extent – guitarist Yusuke. ‘Climax’ actually sort of proves that point. While it is a more collaborative effort than a lynch. album generally is, given that guitarist Reo co-wrote the opening title track, it is more uniform in nature. That also means it’s not quite as engaging as ‘Reborn’, but truth be told, the only lynch. album that came remotely close was 2018’s ‘XIII’.

The worst thing one can say about ‘Climax’ is that it’s a typical lynch. album. It is somewhat above average for the band, but it is characterized by their typical blend of melodic, J-rocky goodness and more aggressive nu-metal pounding that frankly, I could use less of. The crushing riffs mixed with Hazuki’s excellent clean vocals often result in powerful, effective songs, but there are some moments on ‘Climax’ during which melodic information is sparse. ‘Prism Ray’ is the worst offender there; it starts out sounding like it will become an atmospheric, yet driving rocker, but ends up becoming too damn noisy for its own good.

Fortunately, the good far outweighs the bad on ‘Climax’, but with the album being less than half an hour long, every lesser minute is quite a sizeable portion of the experience. However, the singles are generally great introductions to the album’s sound. ‘Ice’ is lynch. doing what they do best, that being melodic rock songs with a heavy bottom-end and an earworm of a chorus. ‘Bringer’ leans more towards the modern metal side of the band, though the interesting guitar arrangements and the hyper-melodic chorus, as well as a somewhat less intense middle section, create something dynamic enough to whet the appetite for the album.

Out of the non-singles – as of writing, at least – the title track is probably my favorite song on the album. It is built on a monstrously groovy riff that Hazuki thankfully decided to sing entirely clean over, and the vocal melodies are some of the best on the album altogether. ‘Silence’ is another highlight. Despite the tight, modern, heavy riffing, basically the entire song being sung in harmony creates a situation where both extremes are enhancing each other. ‘Parasitic E.D.E.N.’ constantly teeters on the edge of chaos, but is kept on track by clever, though not overly complex songwriting twists.

Even though ‘Climax’ is a bit short for an album the band had three years to write and record, that’s always better than forcing out something considerably longer crammed full of filler. At least the songs I personally don’t like appear to be very intentionally put where they are. Obviously, with a band that reaches for extremes as much as lynch. does, there’s always something one could want more of – in my opinion, the album is in dire need of a ‘Sense of Emptiness’-style semi-ballad – but anyone who is a fan of the band, or let’s say The Gazette, can find something to enjoy here.

Recommended tracks: ‘Climax’, ‘Silence’, ‘Ice’

Order ‘Climax’ from nearly anywhere in the world at CD Japan below