whoops... you said that last bit already. Heh. I guess I jumped the gun a little bit.

I haven't read the lyrics, but I would guess that these guys are referring to a soul in the free thinker/artistic sort of way. I doubt anyone in that band believes there is some sort of tangible soul that exists. The fact that they refer to a soul in their music does not subscribe them to some sort of theology-sans-deity. I would actually pat them on the back for attempting to reclaim the word soul from religious context.

Further more, the way you describe the lyrics in your review makes me think that they are merely denouncing monotheistic religions. You automatically assumed that this made them atheist. Just because they denounce judaism, christianity, and (I assume) islam does not mean they cannot believe in a less centralized and more personal religion.

that being said the band could believe in a higher power and not religious dogma but if you look at the discourse of humanists/freethinkers/atheists etc. reason and logic are upheld above all else.

Logic is the cornerstone of any thought system. Are you entirely sure that you know what you mean when you say logic?

yes I'm referring to logic in terms of philosophical logic, and using that to form one's understanding of the world and form arguments on that level. It isn't inherent at all.

I don't think any atheist would have a problem with any theist arguing for the existence of God using a logically sound argument because that is certainly plausible. It is when people go beyond that and preach dogma about things like "heaven" and whatnot that this song attacks. what bI'm saying in the review is the assertion that there is a "soul" contains equally flawed logic as to say there is such a thing as "heaven" or "god says you must brush your hair four times a day" because it cannot be argued soundly.

Logic is the cornerstone of any thought system. Are you entirely sure that you know what you mean when you say logic?

I guess what I was trying to say and didn't with the soul thing is there is "Beyond Reason and Logic" seems to me to point toward atheism because reason and logic are two of the cornerstones of atheist thinking and the idea of a soul is a rather theist term regardless of denomination

Why is it that there are all these Swedish bands that sing in English?

a lot of Christians scare me.

Soul - n - The principle of life, feeling, thought, and action in humans, regarded as a distinct entity separate from the body, and commonly held to be separable in existence from the body; the spiritual part of humans as distinct from the physical part.
- Deeply felt emotion, as conveyed or expressed by a performer or artist.

The concept of an entity that is distinct from, yet related to, the physical human body goes back beyond both Christianity and Judaism. I think that by using these terms in their Atheist music that they are wrestling the meaning of the word soul away from the Judaeo/Christian/Muslim faiths and back to its use as a neutral term.

Also, solid review, I'm thinking about picking this up. I do love socially aware hardcore, and I like what I hear on their MySpace.