Album Review; Emmure - Eternal Enemies

Track Listing:

1. Bring A Gun To School
2. Nemesis
3. N.I.A. (News In Arizona)
4. The Hang Up
5. A Gift A Curse
6. E
7. Like Lamotta
8. Free Publicity
9. Most Hated
10. Grave Markings
11. Hitomi's Shinobi
12. Rat King
13. Girls Don't Like Boys, Girls Like 40's And Blunts
14. New Age Rambler
15. We Were Just Kids


This is both the first time I write about or try to completely digest an Emmure record as a listener. As always, I go into this with an open mind, despite the never-ending torrent of abuse I've seen online, attacking the band, and particularly their fontman Frankie Palmeri. At the same time, I see plenty of people rush to their defense. So for what it's worth, I decided to review this new record myself and add my vote to the count.

I would set the scene here by saying that the last few years have seen a few different things happen that some believed were signalling a return of Nu-Metal. KoRn returned to form, Limp Bizkit came back from the grave, Coal Chamber toured and bands like Escape The Fate had elements of their sound compared to the Nu-Metal of days gone by. I say with no embarrassment that some of the first Metal I discovered and became a fan of was Nu-Metal. Some of the classic Nu-Metal albums, I still listen to from time to time, whenever I feel a little nostalgic.

Therein lies the problem with Emmure, from a matured Metalhead's point of view. Here's a band that have taken the marmite Deathcore subgenre and have mixed it with Nu-Metal's more simplistic and adolescent format. From the intro track 'Bring A Gun To School' this album's goal seems to be to allow kids a way to vent their pre-pubescent problems, and at the same time Emmure seem to be on a hollow mission to shock the parents and authorities of the world. This alone makes me sigh with exasperation at the sheer shallowness of the band.

Before I get into the album properly, I'll get the good points out of the way; The production job is great, the album sounds as professionally mixed as a band of this notoriety should. Now, onto the main event...

'Nemesis' is the album's first song proper, and it's clear that Palmeri's vocal influences are Jonathan Davis, Fred Durst, but he also delivers a bland and generic Deathcore growl. The song itself is largely made up of breakdown-type riffs that are so simplistic, I wonder if Jesse Ketive and Mike Mulholland even know how to play guitar at all. Not even sure if I'd call them riffs. 'N.I.A (News In Arizona)' is lyrically infuriating; the kind of song that only hardcore fans could ever claim has any substance. All this sounds like to me is Frankie Palmeri trying to come across as a hard man while he attempts to sell a sadistic fantasy to kids who want to hear something that's edgy for the sake of it.
"I'm damaged goods, I'm the toy that you broke and threw away, but I'll remain above it all stuck underneath. No one can face me now." That's the kind of lyrics that even Fred Durst would not have been able to sing with a straight face.

'The Hang Up' is another song exactly like the last. Tough-guy posturing, lobotomized musicality, horribly unaccomplished shriek vocals thrown in amongst the Deathcore blandness and Durst-like clean vocals. The fact that Palmeri manages end the first verse by saying "Bullshit you say to get attention, Just pretentious, Growing tired of your shit" is so laughably hypocritical that it made me shake my head every time I heard it. 'A Gift A Curse' is another track that tries to be brooding and introspective, instead coming across as the kind of thing that you'd expect to hear coming from the Cd player of somebody who's very quick to claim that they hate you and nobody understands them.

'E' is a call-to-arms for the die hards that don't know any better than to love Emmure. It contains very clear homages to KoRn, though I can't help but hope that if KoRn ever came to learn that they had inspired this drivel then they would sincerely apologise to the world. Lyrically it's full of the same lines we've heard in countless brainless hip hop and dance songs. The phrase "Keeping it real" should be banned.

Really, there's nothing I can say about the rest of the album that I haven't said already! This record could probably be improved by being half the length that it is. That wouldn't absolve it, however; because this album is so safe, so grounded in a musical blueprint that is less than mediocre that it can't help but be constantly bland and infuriatingly brain dead from start to finish. When it comes to lyricism, there's nothing positive to say whatsoever, I could probably find an instrumental album with better lyrical sense. (Yes, I know how stupid that looks, but honestly, it's utter garbage!)

Emmure have made it plainly clear why Nu-Metal died off and hammer it home that it should never be resurrected. Leave it to the old guard that were actually good enough to carry on after the genre's implosion. If it's Emmure's aspiration to be the new Limp Bizkit, they've got no chance. Limp Bizkit at least had a sense of style to them. This album shows no style at all. In fact, it shows no sense at all.

The only people that could possibly like this record are those who enjoy cheap angst as opposed to anything else. If you love that one-chord-fits-all style of guitar playing, then here's fifteen whole tracks of it. The one thing I can say for Emmure is that they know how to provoke a response from the listener. Many will tediously defend this steaming pile of an album by saying things like "You don't get it, it's not meant for people like you!" or that it's somehow cool to dislike the band. It is true that Emmure probably isn't aiming for fans of Extreme Metal, or any of the more traditional Metal subgenres. However, it gets touted as some form of Metal music and as such, I imagine many Metal fans will reject this band for the hollow insult to modern Metal music that it is.

I can say nothing positive whatsoever about 'Eternal Enemies'; it's a terrible, terrible album that somehow manages to make stuff like Black Veil Brides and Of Mice & Men seem like musical genius. Never a good thing! There's nothing memorable. There's nothing vaguely catchy. There was not a single moment that this album made me do much as nod in appreciation of the music. All that this album has done is taken up time in my life that I can never get back.


Rating: 0.5/10

Album Review; Conan - Blood Eagle

Track Listing:

1. Crown Of Talons
2. Total Conquest
3. Foehammer
4. Gravity Chasm
5. Horns For Teeth
6. Altar Of Grief

So, Conan are a Doom Metal band that have been going since 2007 and 'Blood Eagle' is their third full-length studio album. It also marks the first album released by the three-piece on Napalm Records. Doom Metal, as it stands, is a genre that is fast producing more and more bands into the limelight of the Metal world at this point in time. Often, these are bands that have an occult edge to them. Conan, on the other hand are all Vikings, Tolkien and raw production values.

What Conan prove to be, right from the start of 'Crown Of Talons', is boring! The opening song is nearly ten minutes long and has the slowest, simplest and most irritating riff I've heard in a while (Actually, I'm not sure if I've ever heard an irritating riff!) and has what I can only describe as bad shouting throughout. This then moves into the equally stale and unmoving 'Total Conquest', where Conan manage to show again that their idea of riffing is to simply have both guitar and bass droning over one another, producing a muddy mess that makes Venom's 'Black Metal' album sound like a master class in studio production and mixing.

If 'Total Conquest' was muddy, then the introductory moments of 'Foehammer' are filthy. I do not mean that in the retro-sounding Florida Death Metal scene way. I mean simply that it falls on the ear like a stupefying aural fuzz. The vocals maybe cut through a little bit more, but as positives go, that's like a five pence piece that's found in a bucket of broken glass; it's not worth your trouble enduring such unpleasantness for such a small reward.

Each song is too long, especially when they all lack any sense of dynamics. There is absolutely no personality to this music. The riffs remain infuriatingly simplistic. The drums are never interesting and the purpose of the bass seems to be just to suffocate the guitars and vocals under a horrible tone. People talk about bands playing it safe with their music, but on 'Blood Eagle' Conan are taking it way too far! 'Gravity Chasm' ironically makes you want a black hole to swallow you up. Then 'Horns For Teeth' comes along, sounding like the worst Alice In Chains song you've ever heard covered by Crowbar while drunk.

After a ridiculous minute and a half of droning, empty nonsense, the remaining seven and a half minutes of  'Altars Of Grief' do nothing to redeem this perplexingly poor album. The tone never changed even once on the whole record, and nothing stood out apart from the drums, which wasn't because they were exceptional, but instead it's because they were the only thing that weren't covered in that bloody bass tone! If anyone reading this manages to become a fan of Conan and the 'Blood Eagle' album, and then wonders if they could make it onto my top fifty albums of 2014 come December, I'd say not to hold your breath. This is the kind of album I wouldn't inflict upon anybody, in fact I can only recommend this record to the tone deaf and the masochistic. Don't waste your time and move on swiftly.


Rating: 0/10

Album Review; Animus Complex - Animus Complex

Track Listing:

1. Admission Of Guilt
2. Right To Remain
3. Survive
4. From The Bottom Of Your Soul
5. The Forest
6. The Way Things Should Have Been
7. I.D.
8. Astral Projection


The sound of Arizona's newcomers Animus Complex is easiest described as Progressive Metal, though there's a definite flavour of Djent and a tasteful sense of groove right from the start. The strength of this band and their debut self-titled album comes from sheer musical technicality combined with the ability to craft quality songs that won't be solely appreciated by musicians. There are enough soaring vocal melodies and more extreme vocal styles to appeal to more casual listeners.

The opening riff for 'Admission of Guilt' is a flurry of jazzy sounding single notes before a combined whirlwind of clean and screamed vocals as well as very accomplished percussive backing, that all together hooks this listener, as it should many. No riff is overstaying its welcome, and the song flows well. The album is off to a great start, and the groove comes in large for second song 'Right To Remain', which has a great chorus that will easily remain in the memory of listeners that have a taste for a good melody. The clean singing voice that this band uses reminds me a little bit of Mikael Akerfeldt of Opeth fame.

'Survive' is without a doubt my favourite song on the album. The riff used is clearly jazz-infused, but it's one of the more interesting and unique riffs I've heard recently. The melodies remain high in quality, and the guitar solo present is emotive and backed by an intricate and suitably heavy riff. The drums are another stand-out point in this song, and indeed the band. Anyone who appreciates a talented, inventive drummer will be in for a treat on this album.

'From The Bottom Of Your Soul' starts with one of the more Djent sounding riffs on the album, but it grants the listener a well-timed break from the musical complexity. The leads don't even take a minute to present themselves and are as good as you'd expect at this point. Again, the song constantly twists into something new, keeping the listener on their toes as any Progressive band should. In fact, Animus Complex are a band that are Progressive in the best way. It's superior song-writing, a through-and-through knowledge of their instruments, their own abilities and the medium of Metal that drives this album. This isn't a collection of songs in which each band member simply shows off, and throw in a flute or some obscure instrument that is new to Metal music in an attempt to seem Progressive.

The album, to my mind, has a very organic feel to it. By that, I mean that nothing sounds forced or thrown into the mix in some clumsy attempt to draw in a certain audience. 'The Way Things Should Have Been' starts of with a clean, jazzy riff and percussive background that almost sound like lounge music in a way, but the distortion kicks in at exactly the right place and the band continue to satisfy. 'I.D.' also shows the guitar player's chops, which are as undeniable as the likes of Animals As Leaders guitarist Tosin Abasi.

The album ends on a surprisingly heavy note. 'Astral Projection' has a modern American whiff of bands like Lamb Of God, but without losing the technicality. The best section of the song features a swirling background of synths over a jungle beat and some brilliant bass guitar tapping that is just sublime to hear before a breakdown comes in. As one would expect from this band, it's not a basic breakdown that has been recycled from a laundry-list of bands either.

Uniqueness is the name of the game here. Animus Complex is a band that even in such larval stages as a debut album already have their own sound and their own identity. It's one that very much stands out from the crowd in the best possible way. As the start of this year goes, I cannot think of a band quite like this that deserves your attention half as much. There is nothing I can fault this album for without targeting a particular type of music fan that this clearly is not aimed at, and nor should it be. A self-titled album should be a statement of purpose and intent, this is exactly that. If you don't know this band yet, you're missing out.


Rating: 10/10

Album Review; Black Label Society - Catacombs Of The Black Vatican

Track Listing:

1. Fields Of Unforgivness
2. My Dying Time
3. Believe
4. Angel Of Mercy
5. Heart Of Darkness
6. Beyond The Down
7. Scars
8. Damn The Flood
9. I've Gone Away
10. Empty Promises
11. Shades Of Grey


'Catacombs Of The Black Vatican' stands as the first proper studio album from Black Label Society since 2010's 'Order Of The Black', which was something of a mixed bag to my ear. The rockers rocked loud and hard enough to please the ear of any Hard Rock or Metal fan, but the album suffered from being bogged down by too many ballads. It's great to hear that from the off, this album has some memorable riffs worthy of main man Zakk Wylde's extensive back catalogue.

'Fields Of Unforgiveness' has an obviously Black Sabbath-inspired sound to it, which is to be expected from the man who used to be Ozzy Osbourne's right-hand man. The first single 'My Dying Time' has a distinct feel similar to Black Label Society's 2006 album 'Shot To Hell', in a good way. It's catchy and heavy enough to hit the mark. Unfortunately, the lyrics show Zakk's standing as a born-again Christian, and may be a bit too preachy for some to accept. This is well balanced by 'Believe', which centres on the spiritual again with more of a questioning tone to it, so there is something for everyone to enjoy. The riff is infectious, and the guitar solo is Zakk at his trademark best.

'Angel Of Mercy' is the first ballad to be heard on 'Catacombs...' and it's not that bad, really. Zakk shows again that he can sing both powerfully and gently yet again, while the use of a string section and a satisfying bluesy guitar solo elevate the song. Things then carry on into the groovy 'Heart Of Darkness', which again shows how catchy BLS can be and is one of the more standout songs on the album.

One issue I have is that while the sheen that this album gets from it's production and mixing gives it clarity, it's also sanded down the rough edges that could have given it a bit more impact. As such, even though 'Beyond The Down' may have the best riff on the album, it washes over the listener rather than demanding attention. Still a great song that will probably stand well in their live set, but in the context of the album, this and the other songs could've done with an extra push from the production values.

'Scars' is another ballad that shows the southern tinge of Black Label Society's music well, but other than being a good song to drink bourbon to, this is a lower point on the album, and is probably best left to one side. 'Damn The Flood' is probably the closest to out-and-out Metal that the album gets; it picks up the pace and has a lot more punch to it than the songs that have preceded it. There's another solo in there that gives the long standing Zakk fanatics what they're looking for.

'I've Gone Away' is rather jarring; on the one side you have a heavy riff that's great to hear, but on the other, the vocal melody is rather too passive and dragged out to go along with it. It's more of a grower than a shower, as one can get used to this musical juxtaposition, but it may be rejected by those looking for a quick fix of biker rock.

'Empty Promises' starts with one of the most interesting percussive patterns I've yet heard in a Black Label Society song, showing that the band's latest drummer Chad Szeliga (previously of Breaking Benjamin) can bring something new to the fold. After that it's business as usual for Zakk and Co. The album's closer 'Shades Of Grey' is another ballad, but one of the best that Black Label Society have put out to date. In a word, it's a gorgeous song that should get people holding lighters to the sky. To my mind, it stands as the band's own equivalent to the Guns 'N' Roses classic 'November Rain'. It also makes for a rather classy and unexpected ending to the album.

This is Black Label Society I'm talking about, so I doubt anybody familiar with the band was expecting a big leap forward in terms of their sound, but 'Catacombs Of The Black Vatican' stands as a collection of pretty good songs, that make for an enjoyable listen. By no means would I call it essential listening unless, like me, you fly the Black Label colours proudly. Even then, it's clearly not their best work. Put short; it's a light hearted, fun album that, while good to listen to, unfortunately falls far short of being something truly special.


Rating: 6.5/10

Album Review; Lvcifyre - Svn Eater

Track Listing:

1. Night Seas Sorcery
2. Calicem Obscurum
3. Liber Lilith
4. Svn Eater
5. In Fornication Waters
6. Nekuomanteion
7. The Fiery Spheres Of The Seven
8. Fyre Made Flesh
9. The Sinister Calling


Being completely honest; upon my first listen to this album 'Svn Eater', I wasn't completely sold. Black Metal is a genre just like any other - it has it's copycats. Bands that, despite the fact it's 2014 and they'd easily be able to get ahold of some decent home studio equipment, decide to make their recorded output sound really shitty and reverb-drenched, just to be like their 90's Norwegian heroes; evil sounding music from the underground. In reality, most of it just ends up sounding really cheap. More like a Disney villain than anything to do with supposed demonic entities.

'Svn Eater' comes dangerously close to making the same mistake. It's not all typical Black Metal; the opening song 'Night Seas Sorcery' begins with Doom Metal pace, sluggish guitars and drums twisting around echoing rasps. Filling the empty spaces is a droning bass guitar. For a solid five minutes this continues. A bit long, some may agree, but the waiting soon pays off somewhat. Death growls make their first appearance, as does a sense of speed and heaviness.

'Calicem Obscurum' is quite typical Black Metal for the most part, although a lot of the vocal work owes to Death Metal. The Death vocals are pretty damned accomplished, actually. They go as deep as any Death Metal fan could want. The idea clearly seems to be for the song to sound like a swirling mass of Chaos. Constant blast beats, evil-sounding tremolo-picked chord progressions, a few Slayer-esque guitar leads for good measure. All the ingredients are there. It's just a tad too predictable. The screams of "Summon me" half way through are quite silly, too. Obviously, the demonic has always been a key element of Black Metal, but at this point it is rather cabaret. Black Metal has grown up since the 90's.

Another issue that makes itself blatantly known in 'Liber Lilith' is that the lyrics are difficult to make out. Not because of the vocal style, but because the ever present echo in the production makes the vocals quite muddy at times, infuriatingly hiding the lyrics. The title track is another all-speed Black Metal song. There's a lot of impressive drumming going on, but largely, it still strikes the same iron, only it's not so hot anymore.

'In Fornication Waters' starts with another dose of droning bass sounds, and when the music comes in proper...it's the same again. Lyrically, it's a twisted account of sickening or disturbing lustful and carnal desires. Which is all fine and well, but such things aren't really shocking anymore, are they?

There may be the odd slower, doomy passage where the intention may be to increase atmosphere, or allow the listener a breather, but the sad thing is that these are the better parts of the songs. There's a refreshing melodic guitar solo in 'Nekuomanteion', but that's over too quickly to really change my opinion of this offering. Hell, maybe it'll be better suited for live showings. Maybe I'm missing something when I'm listening to it, because all I've heard are great things about this album. I can only be honest though, and in all honesty; this album basically bored me. It's all very samey, nothing stood out either on the record or from the hordes or Black Metal bands. Something about it feels to me like a rehashing of twenty year-old ideas. At this point in time, Black Metal doesn't need that.

If you're a rabid Black Metal fan, this may be your cup of tea. If this is your first taste of Black Metal, I can well imagine it would be an eye opener. For me, and maybe others who have listened to more than their fair share, this is, in a word; throwaway. There are many other Black Metal bands that are either doing something more original or memorable, such as Marduk, Rotting Christ or Behemoth. And with Mayhem set to make a return to the fold, I don't know what need there is for Lvcifyre in my record collection at the moment.


Rating: 2/10

Album Review; Savage Messiah - The Fateful Dark

Track Listing:

1. Iconocaust
2. Minority Of One
3. Cross Of Babylon
4. Hellblazer
5. Live As One Already Dead
6. The Fateful Dark
7. Zero Hour
8. Hammered Down
9. Scavengers Of Mercy
10. The Cursed Earth


England's standing as one of, if not the best country for the output of classic Heavy Metal albums is undeniable. This is where the whole thing started, after all. However; in the present day, the UK is often overshadowed by the USA, Scandinavia and Europe for it's output of good and great bands or albums. One problem I've noticed is an overabundance of tween, copycat Metalcore bands that bring absolutely nothing original to Metal, be that in sound, appearance, live performance, etcetera. Fortunately, those who know where to look can still find really good bands lurking underneath the smokescreen of the ludicrously mainstream. Savage Messiah are one of these bands that caught my attention in a big way only two years ago with their album 'Plague Of Conscience' and a memorable set on the Sophie Lancaster stage at Bloodstock Festival in 2012.

Upon hearing the new album, 'The Fateful Dark', I had hopes of it being another strong album from this very promising band. Kicking off with triumphant-sounding guitar leads reminiscent of 'Screaming For Vengeance' era Judas Priest, 'Iconocaust' shows off riffs that's also cut from the cloth of Megadeth and Destruction just as much as the UK greats like Iron Maiden. Dave Silver's vocals might have the odd Hetfield-like enunciation to them here and there, but there's a Mustaine-like sense of melody that works well with the technical-yet-tasteful music. High falsettos are thrown in for good measure, and the end result is a very good album opener.

'Minority Of One' has a similar feel to some of the songs on 'Plague Of Conscience', with a bloody brilliant guitar solo and the socio-political theme behind the lyrics that makes it sound like it could just as easily be a Megadeth song, and a great one at that. All credit to them for that. 'Cross Of Babylon' is a definite Thrasher, through-and-through. Andrea Gorio, the band's new drummer, shows his chops on this song, and he's a great fit with the music of Savage Messiah. There's a great sing-along quality to the chorus of the aforementioned song that has a traditional Metal or even Power Metal feel to it. Whatever you call it, it's big, it's memorable, and it shows that Dave Silver can sing his heart out, with very flamboyant vocal abilities when the music calls for it.

'Hellblazer' steps back into that Judas Priest territory again, and does so very successfully, thanks in no small part to Joff Bailey and Silver's great guitar playing . It's the kind of song that should have you headbanging like a trooper, doing air-guitar like an idiot and singing with a clenched fist raised high. Heavy Metal's pure spirit is blatantly on show here. Hurrah!

In comes the clean and emotive guitar lines for 'Live As One Already Dead'. Savage Messiah are not the first band I think of when I look for balladry, but here they show a fair aptitude for it. What they deliver here is the kind of mildly soul searching song that shows another dimension that would take a lot of people by surprise. It's a hell of a tune, and again Dave Silver shows the extent of his vocal prowess. Throw in a captivating guitar solo and you have a fantastic song, and an unexpected highlight. Too many bands are too busy trying to be brutal or too caught up in shredding like their guitarist is the new Dimebag Darrell that they miss the part where they're meant to be writing great songs, in my opinion.

The title track comes in stomping all over the place with a big, bouncing, headbanging riff. The riff-vocal-riff-vocal song structure doesn't get old, does it? Especially when the riffs are as big and juicy as the ones Savage Messiah are packing. 'Zero Hour' is equally as brilliant, with the band channelling their inner Metal God as the anthemic feel carries on from song to song. How they're able too keep up such high quality from song to song is astounding.

'Hammered Down' takes things back to the Thrash side of the coin again. It's full-speed ahead, with lyrical content and a chorus that is perfectly crafted for the live environment. A nice half-time headbanging riff is a good addition in the right place, but it's not long until the song would be calling for a furious pit. I'd be too happy to oblige at a show.

'Scavengers Of Mercy' is another Thrash Metal piece with the rhythm section sounding tighter than the coil of a bear trap. The falsettos in the chorus give the listener the evergreen chance to challenge the Halford within every Metalhead. The greatest thing about this album as a whole is that everything is sounding big. Massive, even. Producer Scott Atkins has helped this to no end, but the mainstay of the credit simply must go to the band members themselves for writing and executing a great album, their best work to date. All things considered; this album is a testimony that Savage Messiah have a lot ahead of them. They've blown my expectations apart with 'The Fateful Dark', and that is saying something. Let's hope they are recognised as a glimmer of light in what is largely a very bland UK Metal scene. That's the least that this band, and this album deserves.


Rating: 9/10

Album Review; Butcher Babies - Goliath

Track Listing:

1. I Smell A Massacre
2. Magnolia Blvd.
3. C8h18 (Gasoline)
4. Grim Sleeper
5. Goliath
6. In Denial
7. Give Me Reason
8. The Mirror Never Lies
9. Dead Poet
10. The Deathsurround
11. Axe Wound


I've always made it clear to people that whenever I am faced with a new album, I do my best to be open minded and honest about it. I don't like to base my opinions in regards to any Metal album or band on appearance, genre, or anybody else's opinion. Hell, my favourite band ever is Motorhead, yet if they released a bad album, I'd be the first one to admit it. On the flip side, I was massively surprised at how great last year's BMTH album 'Sempiternal' was. I still listen to it, a proper quality album. However, there will always be a few bands round the corner that, while considered controversial, I cannot in good conscience, ignore. (There's a few more coming up, I assure you)

Butcher Babies are one of these bands. Their early exposure was mainly due to some idea of shock value meets sex appeal. The band has two frontwomen; Heidi Shepherd and Carla Harvey, who spent the early days of the band performing onstage in barely any clothes, with nipple tape and smearings of fake blood. They say the look was inspired by Wendy O Williams of the Plasmatics, but it's tricky to take their claims seriously. The vehement reaction of a lot of Metalheads is understandable by that factor alone! Reality is, unless this turns out to be the first Metal band you've listened to; there's no shock in this at all, so a lot of people just saw it as a means to grab attention. To be fair, whether it was positive or negative attention they received, they got it. The album 'Goliath' came out last year, but it is only now that I decided "Screw it, I'll give it a shot!"

Basically, what I've heard on this album is a very strange beast. There's elements of Modern Metal bands like The Defiled and other, more melodic Metalcore bands. There's a lot of Pantera influence in the groove. It's far from terrible, but at the end of the day, it's something that a lot of people won't really know what to do with.

The problem comes in the vocals. Heidi Shepherd's screams are alright. She's no Angela Gossow, obviously, but for what Butcher Babies are doing, it fits without being exceptional. It's very limited in range; nine times out of ten, it's high or nothing. The real weakness lies in the clean vocals, which more often than not sound too mall-of-America. That is, there's a palpable feel of L.A. pretence. It's sugar sweet over the top of what is sometimes rather good, if familiar music. Opening tracks 'I Smell A Massacre' and 'Magnolia Blvd' suffer from this problem. Though they are, in themselves, decent songs. 'C8H18 (Gasoline)' uses a clean sang melody that suits the vocal style a bit better, and is the better song for it. Musically, it could be a song by The Defiled. There are places where the vocals seem more vulnerable in mood, or tense, that show a third dimension to the sound.

Catchiness is one thing this album has by the truckload. The riffs, while often unremarkable, are catchy. The choruses and vocal lines are also really catchy. 'Grim Sleeper' also bears that stamp that reminds me of The Defiled. Lyrically, it's a bit too wet for me, "Calling out no one knows I'm here, I'm nameless and faceless as fear" makes it a bit of a tired attempt at reaching out to emo kids.

The title track 'Goliath' starts out with a solid riff that is just underused more than anything. There's a great pace to this song too. Lyrically, it's more venomous than I'd expected this band to come out with. It actually lives up to it's namesake. 'In Denial' sees the sugar sweet vocals return again, annoyingly. It also starts out with a guitar lead that could've jumped right off of Bullet For My Valentine's 'Fever' album. There's a pretty boring breakdown followed by another BFMV-esque guitar solo. There's another venture into heartbroken, traumatised territory with a short vocal line that sounds on the verge of tears. It'll convince some while it pisses others off.

'Give Me Reason' is a definite low point. There's nothing striking about it, and again those clean vocals are too prominent. 'The Mirror Never Lies' is a better, more sinister song (Well, sinister for this kind of Metal). There's a bit of a swagger in the way the verses are delivered and the groove is about as slick as it gets. Alongside 'Dead Poet', these two songs show an almost Disturbed tinge to the band's repertoire. There's also a decent lower-register scream vocal shown.

'The Deathsurround' brings in another Defiled-type riff, and another groove to fit. There's a real stomp to it though, which makes it a stand-out track. In the light of what this band has done so far, it only seems obvious that they close the album with a track called 'Axe Wound'. To be frank, it doesn't end on a high note. It would've been wiser to have more of a party Metal vibe closing the record.

The sound of this band is mainstream. There's no getting past that. This is not, nor was it ever going to be an album aimed at Black or Death Metal fans. This is safe Metalcore meets Groove Metal, but as that goes, it's not actually that bad, musically. I can see the appeal to many, because in terms of sound it is a step away from the predictability of BFMV and Avenged Sevenfold. That's what this band is aimed at; people who want their fix of passably heavy music to have fun to. I have been surprised by this album, but I wouldn't call it brilliant. There are things that it is better than, including the last Nickelback album, Of Mice & Men's 'Restoring Force' and BFMV's 'Temper Temper'. The real test will be seeing if this band is a flash in the pan (No pun intended!) or if it has staying power. I'll remain a skeptic on that issue for the foreseeable future. And just to be clear, this band is a Metal band, in sound. Though it may be debatable if they are Metal in spirit or execution.


Rating: 6/10