Produced by Josh Wilbur (Trivium, Lamb Of God, Gojira), the Lamb Of God follows up his 2019 debut solo album Anaesthetic with this five-track release, comprising two covers and three original compositions. Whilst I enjoyed his debut album, it was the opportunity to see him deliver the tracks acoustically at The Thekla recently which really opened the eyes to Morton’s wider talent. Ether opens with All I Had To Lose, one of two songs to feature Mark Morales, whose voice fits the song perfectly. Morales was superb at the live show, and he gives a stellar performance on this original song. A delicately composed track, Morton’s playing is understated, allowing Morales to take centre stage with an emotion-filled performance. The Fight follows, for me the weakest song of the five. An electronic drumbeat echoes in the background, John Carbone of Moon Tooth delivers the vocals and the track transfers from acoustic to electric but the whole thing is just a little bland in comparison to the other tracks.
Now, I’m not a huge fan of Lzzy Hale. I’m one of the few who struggles to find anything exciting about her band. However, on She Talks To Angels, we get a powerfully honest cover of The Black Crowes song from their sensational 1990 debut Shake Your Money Maker, Hale plays the perfect foil to Morton’s guitar work and whilst it’s impossible to match the original, this version is a quality cover. Love My Enemy features one of the best voices in the business, that of one Howard Jones (Light the Torch, ex-Killswitch Engage). Love My Enemy opens with Jones hitting the higher notes, a measured approach before the electric riffing starts, Jones opens the pipes and we are treated to a blast of those legendary soulful sounds. Morton’s playing once again sits in the background, but his song writing is solid, and he also gets to let rip with a meaty, if slightly truncated solo. Love My Enemy might well be my favourite song on this release.
But it is pushed all the way by the closing track, a fine cover of Pearl Jam’s Black. Not an easy song to cover, Morton and Morales make it sound easy, with Morales’ performance impressive. Attempting to replicate Eddie Vedder would be pointless, so Morales heads off a different path, his gritty vocals don’t struggle as he ensures that his delivery sits comfortably but also pushes him all the way. Having seen him sing the song live, I have no doubt that this is a genuinely heartfelt effort. Five tracks, all different in style and delivery. An EP that is well worth listening to. 8/10
Doomed To Fail: Fury (Self Produced) [Simon Black]
This first full-length album from Austrian 5 piece Doom/Melodic Death outfit Doomed To Fail shows more promise than the cynical self-doubt in their choice of name implies, although at 6 tracks it still feels a little short. Short, but very punchy...They’ve been around for a couple of years, and this is the first release since their original 2016 EP The Grey and although I can see that the original 3 tracks have been re-recorded here, however there is a massive step forward in all round cohesion between the two versions of the songs. If I was looking for a likely influences, I would say early Amon Amarth with a good helping of mid-90’s Paradise Lost on the instrumentals, particularly the lead guitar work.
Doomed To Fail: Fury (Self Produced) [Simon Black]
This first full-length album from Austrian 5 piece Doom/Melodic Death outfit Doomed To Fail shows more promise than the cynical self-doubt in their choice of name implies, although at 6 tracks it still feels a little short. Short, but very punchy...They’ve been around for a couple of years, and this is the first release since their original 2016 EP The Grey and although I can see that the original 3 tracks have been re-recorded here, however there is a massive step forward in all round cohesion between the two versions of the songs. If I was looking for a likely influences, I would say early Amon Amarth with a good helping of mid-90’s Paradise Lost on the instrumentals, particularly the lead guitar work.
Tight, catchy, with some nice really tight riffs and hooks, really skilful solo licks and that rarest of rarities an engaging and comprehensible death vocal style, you get the sense that this is an outfit with a future, and I would be interested to see if they can pull it off live. If I had a criticism, it’s that the production values seem a little low for the age we live in, but these guys are self-produced, the song-writing punches above its weight, and the musicianship is top notch, so fair play to them. An impressive debut, but a shame they couldn’t have moved away from The Grey with a full batch of new songs. 7/10
Blessed Black: Beyond The Crimson Throne (Self Produced) [Simon Black]
When Matt sent this over and I saw the name of the band, I thought he was having a giraffe, but I’m glad he did. The second of two self-produced debut’s in my swag bag this month, Blessed Black hail from Cincinnati in the Mid-West USA, and don’t seem to have been around for long. This is a promising slab of stoner rock, definitely in the C.O.C. vein, but with tighter musicianship, so you get the sense that the stoned part is for after the show. Starting bravely for a debut with the instrumental track The White Wolf, the band show their influences, slab-like approach to riffage and technical skill in that first 3 minutes. And then it gets better, with vocalist (and guitars) Joshua Murphy adding a powerful, haunting timbre to the whole thing, and quite frankly is spot on with his performance.
Blessed Black: Beyond The Crimson Throne (Self Produced) [Simon Black]
When Matt sent this over and I saw the name of the band, I thought he was having a giraffe, but I’m glad he did. The second of two self-produced debut’s in my swag bag this month, Blessed Black hail from Cincinnati in the Mid-West USA, and don’t seem to have been around for long. This is a promising slab of stoner rock, definitely in the C.O.C. vein, but with tighter musicianship, so you get the sense that the stoned part is for after the show. Starting bravely for a debut with the instrumental track The White Wolf, the band show their influences, slab-like approach to riffage and technical skill in that first 3 minutes. And then it gets better, with vocalist (and guitars) Joshua Murphy adding a powerful, haunting timbre to the whole thing, and quite frankly is spot on with his performance.
Unlike some self-produced debuts the production on this album is very strong, and what is surprising is the complex technical production and layering going on here – the kind of technical harmonies you don’t expect to hear in this sub-genre, but which create a lovely hypnotic feel to the record, and I can see this working well live as long as they can get someone on the desk who gets their sound. The downside? Well, at 7 tracks and 35 minutes, it’s short for an album, but as I always say to my kids don’t speak if you have nothing to say. There is a sense that there is a sameness to the pace through the tracks but they are so well overlaid with innovative guitar layers that it really doesn’t matter, and three listens in I’m still raising thumbs (and of course horns) in appreciation. 8/10
Skull Korpator: Chaos Station (Ragnarok Records) [Matt Bladen]
Ah thrash, it's one of those things that when done well it's a brilliant, when it's not done well it can be very stale and repetitive. Athens thrashers are more on the positive side of things thankfully despite their terrible name, they manage to bring some classic metal chops to their thrash attack, the Intro is built around some marching military drum beat as it moves into the first track proper Hatred which gallops with trad metal riffs bolstered by the thrash tenacity. It's a pretty good way of opening the record as it's followed by the much thrashier Blast It Out and Burnt Society which channels the Big Four but mainly Anthrax along with Testament due to the incredible drumming on display. Skull Korpator are a trio, which makes this album even more impressive as it never stops being heavy but they also have grooves on Breakthrough along with bounce to Fatal Wrecking. Raging thrash metal undercut with trad metal melodies (Voices Of Despair) Chaos Station is decent thrash metal album and worth your time. 7/10
Skull Korpator: Chaos Station (Ragnarok Records) [Matt Bladen]
Ah thrash, it's one of those things that when done well it's a brilliant, when it's not done well it can be very stale and repetitive. Athens thrashers are more on the positive side of things thankfully despite their terrible name, they manage to bring some classic metal chops to their thrash attack, the Intro is built around some marching military drum beat as it moves into the first track proper Hatred which gallops with trad metal riffs bolstered by the thrash tenacity. It's a pretty good way of opening the record as it's followed by the much thrashier Blast It Out and Burnt Society which channels the Big Four but mainly Anthrax along with Testament due to the incredible drumming on display. Skull Korpator are a trio, which makes this album even more impressive as it never stops being heavy but they also have grooves on Breakthrough along with bounce to Fatal Wrecking. Raging thrash metal undercut with trad metal melodies (Voices Of Despair) Chaos Station is decent thrash metal album and worth your time. 7/10
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