Depending on where you mark the stages evolution of Lamb of God, it has been twenty years since they effectively began the concentrated march towards the Metal behemoth we know and love today. Most of you will know they were originally monikered Burn The Priest, and released an eponymous album in 1999 before revamping themselves as LoG around the time of the appointment of Willie Adler on guitar for 2000’s New American Gospel (Prosthetic) – the band’s only line-up change in their history.
So, what we have here is not a failure to a communicate, but a celebration of communicating the wild and free, of the musical landscape and headspaces of the protagonists of Burn The Priest over the formative years of the band; five alternative music lovers living, bonging, partying and riffing in Richmond, Virginia. The band has often referred to themselves as “Punks who play Metal”, and this recognition of their origins lays down that marker. While it may a little unexpected, and definitely disappointing to many, that, considering Lamb of God have been oft-referred to as “a cross between Slayer and Pantera”, neither influence make it onto the album, but that is not the most surprising elements of Legion: XX (Nuclear Blast).
But we shall get to both of those points…
Kicking both the album and this coverage off with a precise riffer that allows Randy Blythe to pour vomit and bile as BtP Crossover to the max, ‘Inherit The Earth’ (The Accused) is a taut, Testament-tinged Thrasher that sits comfortably in the selection of songs that could be dubbed “As Expected” along with ‘We Gotta Know’ (Cro-Mags), ‘One Voice’ (Agnostic Front) and ‘Kill Yourself’ (S.O.D.), these songs blazon by, muscular and doing what you think they’re going to do very nicely, thank you very much. I’m going to include a faithful and fun version of ‘Jesus Built My Hotrod’ (Ministry) in with these too. Well delivered. As expected. Good.
So far, so solid. Yes? Well, these are those that thunder by as the head nods, but it is in the other “half” of the album (non-linear) where the interest is truly piqued. ‘Honey Bucket’ (The Melvins) is the second track in, and John Campbell’s bass clanks under a thrashed up, grooving grunge number as Blythe cuts loose a deranged La Sexorcisto… era Rob Zombie vibe we’ve not heard from him before, setting the tone for some welcome vocal diversification and experimentation. Whereas on ‘Kill Yourself’ he demonstrates a new sweetspot, taking an slather of venom off his trademark acidic delivery while replacing it with a touch of vinegar and gravel, ‘Honey Bucket’ opens the door to a whole new world of vocal possibilities into Lamb of God’s future, an avenue I hope they take as, in the main, it adds a cool as fuck dimension. ‘I Against I’ (Bad Brains) is a cool, punky take played out against LoG’s meticulous production (I do still wish they’d just let go and allow a bit more looseness and their famed live attack in the studio, but it doesn’t stunt what they’re doing) and Blythe adding melodies whilst not attempting to copy H.R.’s indomitable style, before they highlight one of Blythe’s favourite bands, the experimental Sliang Laos and their weird math-grunge of ‘Axis Rot’, with its snotty, unconventional vocal.
All of this brings us the two album highlights, tracks nine and three: ‘Dine Alone’ (Quicksand), a standout, grungy post-Hardcore (as in “actual” Helmet etc post-Hardcore from before the term was misappropriated) track thick with chunk, and Big Black’s ‘Kerosene’; a crisply delivered, powerful, alternatively assertive, neck-snapping slab of guitar chug and pull, with a huge bass hook as Campbell thunders and Blythe cleanly spits out the song’s series of punk/noise hooks.
There’s already been a flood of tears online about both the tracklisting and the decision to title this Burn The Priest, but that all misses the point. This is a band celebrating an era in their lives from a position of reminiscence, revelling in what they were listening to and who they were at that time. But… you know what? By integrating these influences, or memories, and particularly by exploring more of what Blythe’s newly proven diversity could bring, LoG would be giving themselves a shot of vitality into the arm of a well-established sound, and create the option to move into very interesting spaces in their third decade. They only need to go keep hanging out near to their true roots.
7.5/10
STEVE TOVEY