Lamb of God is an American groove metal band. Do not be overly alarmed if you have no idea what that means. Neither did I for a considerable period of time, before I eventually came to the conclusion that groove metal is at best a filler genre – it straddles metalcore and thrash metal. Besides, it also satisfies our very human urge to label everything in sight. One heavy metal band epitomizes the definition of groove metal. That’s Pantera. For many, groove metal begins and ends with Pantera. If you are a fan, forget everything else you’ve heard about syncopation (Wikipedia) and filler genres (me); you’ve already got a pretty good idea what this genre is all about.
‘Wrath’ is Lamb of God’s sixth studio album. Let me first explain why this band cannot easily be classified as metalcore. The overall sound is darker, and completely lacks the melodic overtones that many metalcore songs have. The reason for this simple – a firm insistence on down-tuned guitars, and low frequency riffing. Lamb of God also refrain from too much thrashiness, by giving equal importance to unmuted chords. Even the picked (as opposed to strummed) riffs are longer than the usual metalcore’s. The guitarists bring in four, five, six notes before falling back to palm muting or chording. In fact I think this technique, backed by the guitarists’ undoubted technical ability, is Lamb of God’s greatest strength. With their usual searing pace, they almost always manage to hit the sweet spot with their riffing. ‘Grace’, the first song I listened to off this album is an excellent example of this. Interestingly, this song highlights another aspect of this band’s music – the occasional acoustic preludes. Perhaps this feature is an attempt to brush off the criticism of monotony that has often been directed towards them. In any case, it works. ‘Grace’ is an excellent song. ‘Everything to Nothing’ is my personal favourite though. It sticks to the same tried and tested formula, does nothing new, and packs one hell of a punch.
Video: Grace
Video: Everything To Nothing
I have spoken of how Lamb of God move away from traditional metalcore, while still identifying with it. Where does thrash metal come in? The usual screaming by vocalist Randy Blythe is interspersed with bouts of very thrash metal like shouting. Actually, the vocals are reminiscent of an excellent, if underappreciated thrash metal band called Overkill. For any metalcore based music to not inevitably fizzle out, the vocals have to bleed raw energy. Blythe delivers, and with aplomb. The chorus of ‘Fake Messiah’ (another excellent song) highlights his considerable vocal skill in the higher end of the decibel scale. Lamb of God move even closer to thrash metal with their solos: nearly all songs accommodate one. The solos keep up the high tempo and manage to blend seamlessly in. Breakdowns, the staple food of metalcore, are there too. In fact some songs have both breakdowns and solos. While the breakdowns are not totally stripped down to zero speed, they do their job – you’ll find yourself nodding your head in rhythm, if not quite jumping up and down.
‘Dead Seeds’ has some delightful bends in the opening riff. ‘Contractor’ has an Iron Maiden-esque galloping riff that I can’t seem to get tired of, no matter how many bands I hear it from. ‘Choke Sermon’ is fast, groovy and an excellent listen. ‘Reclamation’, and the two bonus tracks, ‘Shoulder to your God’ and ‘We Die Alone’ break away slightly from convention: they are slower and correspondingly longer, with mixed results. ‘We Die Alone’ and ‘Shoulder to your God’ evoke favourable comparisons to As I Lay Dying’s music, but ‘Reclamation’, the longest song on the album at just over 7 minutes, disappoints. On the whole, this album blows you away with its frenetic pace and groovy riffs. If there’s anything negative to speak of, it’s that my first impression was to doubt the lasting power of this album. However it’s been a month and I am not bored one bit; that should go some way in dispelling any doubts.
Video: Dead Seeds (live)
Rating: (Vocals: 9/10, Riffs: 9/10, Overall: 9/10)
‘Wrath’ is Lamb of God’s sixth studio album. Let me first explain why this band cannot easily be classified as metalcore. The overall sound is darker, and completely lacks the melodic overtones that many metalcore songs have. The reason for this simple – a firm insistence on down-tuned guitars, and low frequency riffing. Lamb of God also refrain from too much thrashiness, by giving equal importance to unmuted chords. Even the picked (as opposed to strummed) riffs are longer than the usual metalcore’s. The guitarists bring in four, five, six notes before falling back to palm muting or chording. In fact I think this technique, backed by the guitarists’ undoubted technical ability, is Lamb of God’s greatest strength. With their usual searing pace, they almost always manage to hit the sweet spot with their riffing. ‘Grace’, the first song I listened to off this album is an excellent example of this. Interestingly, this song highlights another aspect of this band’s music – the occasional acoustic preludes. Perhaps this feature is an attempt to brush off the criticism of monotony that has often been directed towards them. In any case, it works. ‘Grace’ is an excellent song. ‘Everything to Nothing’ is my personal favourite though. It sticks to the same tried and tested formula, does nothing new, and packs one hell of a punch.
Video: Grace
Video: Everything To Nothing
I have spoken of how Lamb of God move away from traditional metalcore, while still identifying with it. Where does thrash metal come in? The usual screaming by vocalist Randy Blythe is interspersed with bouts of very thrash metal like shouting. Actually, the vocals are reminiscent of an excellent, if underappreciated thrash metal band called Overkill. For any metalcore based music to not inevitably fizzle out, the vocals have to bleed raw energy. Blythe delivers, and with aplomb. The chorus of ‘Fake Messiah’ (another excellent song) highlights his considerable vocal skill in the higher end of the decibel scale. Lamb of God move even closer to thrash metal with their solos: nearly all songs accommodate one. The solos keep up the high tempo and manage to blend seamlessly in. Breakdowns, the staple food of metalcore, are there too. In fact some songs have both breakdowns and solos. While the breakdowns are not totally stripped down to zero speed, they do their job – you’ll find yourself nodding your head in rhythm, if not quite jumping up and down.
‘Dead Seeds’ has some delightful bends in the opening riff. ‘Contractor’ has an Iron Maiden-esque galloping riff that I can’t seem to get tired of, no matter how many bands I hear it from. ‘Choke Sermon’ is fast, groovy and an excellent listen. ‘Reclamation’, and the two bonus tracks, ‘Shoulder to your God’ and ‘We Die Alone’ break away slightly from convention: they are slower and correspondingly longer, with mixed results. ‘We Die Alone’ and ‘Shoulder to your God’ evoke favourable comparisons to As I Lay Dying’s music, but ‘Reclamation’, the longest song on the album at just over 7 minutes, disappoints. On the whole, this album blows you away with its frenetic pace and groovy riffs. If there’s anything negative to speak of, it’s that my first impression was to doubt the lasting power of this album. However it’s been a month and I am not bored one bit; that should go some way in dispelling any doubts.
Video: Dead Seeds (live)
Rating: (Vocals: 9/10, Riffs: 9/10, Overall: 9/10)
