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Frenetically enjoyable debut Death / Thrash from Cincinnati. Tremolo-picked riffs are the name of the game here and they persist in pretty much every tune. The vocals are a shrieked Thrash style which doesn't always work, but I love it on this album. The vocals lend an urgency to the songs. Songs get very samey near the end of the album, but I still never got bored. Production isn't anything special. The bandmembers attack these tunes with youthful aplomb and I can't help but ... read more
Finnish Black Metal newcomers Acolythus have put out a nice debut. Musicianship is very evident as the tremolo picked riffs and melodies are all over the place. The songwriting leans on the guitar work as the basis for all of these tunes, and while I don't mind that, all the songs are very samey and just blur into each other. The band performs these tunes with visceral ferocity, though, so the songs end up being enjoyable even though telling them apart is difficult. Production is fairly ... read more
I really enjoyed this album. The Quill's 12th album over their near-40-year span, it's a great example of Stoner-adjacent Heavy Metal. Fuzzed-out guitars form the base of this platter, and the riffs, in general, are very tasty. The songs, while they get a touch samey due to similar, mid-paced tempos, are generally engaging and fun. The production, while generally typical for the style, is a little more compressed than I would like. I'd also like a touch less effects on the vocals ... read more
OK, some of the good on here: The riffs and musicianship are great. I love the guitar work. The production SOUND is excellent and everything is very clear. The songs are diverse and have many interesting pieces. Some of the bad: The vocals are just not my cup of tea. That howled pseudo-growl has never been my favorite style. Some of the ugly: This album is WAAAAAAAAAAAY too long. Every song loses steam even given the diverse songwriting. I kept waiting for them all to end. I often believe that ... read more
The riffs on this album rule. This is how Stoner Metal should pop. Every tune has something very tasty in the guitar department. The songwriting gets a bit samey as the album progresses and that does impede the listener's ability to just dive in full throttle on these tunes. The riffs will keep you coming back, though, to be sure. Production is a touch murky, and while it works for the vocals, the rest needs to be a little more clear (especially the drums which are kinda buried). This ... read more
About
I use a self-designed meta-rubric to objectively rate albums for this site. However, when I am rating albums for my year-end lists, I use a much more subjective system. Therefore, the two ratings will not necessarily align.
Un vagabondo borracho
It's what I do: I drink beer and I know things.
Heavy Metal Seer
It's 9:00am somewhere.
"There's no secret handshake. There's an IQ prerequisite, but there's no secret handshake."
Acerbic and abrasive - that sums me up fairly well
Un vagabondo borracho
It's what I do: I drink beer and I know things.
Heavy Metal Seer
It's 9:00am somewhere.
"There's no secret handshake. There's an IQ prerequisite, but there's no secret handshake."
Acerbic and abrasive - that sums me up fairly well
Around the Web
Rating Distribution
| 100 | ||
| 90 - 99 | 1 | |
| 80 - 89 | 7 | |
| 70 - 79 | 51 | |
| 60 - 69 | 147 | |
| 50 - 59 | 49 | |
| 40 - 49 | 10 | |
| 30 - 39 | 6 | |
| 20 - 29 | 3 | |
| 10 - 19 | 4 | |
| 0 - 9 |
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Member since August 28, 2025