With their self titled sophomore, Crowbar refine the sound they created on their debut. On Obedience Thru Suffering, Crowbar mixed doom and hardcore, being one of the first bands to do so. Inarguably one of the pioneers of sludge, this release shows Crowbar improving upon their sound in just about every way imaginable. It isn’t at all a divergence from the template they previously laid out, just a more calculated version of it. The vocals are improved, the songwriting more focused, everyone’s better at their instruments and the production is more developed, while still retaining it’s dirty feel. (…)
Whisky tinged bellowed vocals, fantastic riffing that often blurs the lines between doom and hardcore, great to the point drumming and dirty bass lines – the foundation is all here (…)
While on the debut, Kirk’s vocals where at their rawest and most unrestrained, here his singing shows development beyond bursts of anger. They feel full, powerful and perfectly convey the negative emotions he is trying to get out. While roaring out “This world’s hard, it’s cold, it’s agony” on “Existence Is Punishment”, it is readily apparent that he stands fully behind what is coming out of his mouth. Though there are some hardcore inspired bursts, the guitar is generally played at a slower pace. The riffs are consistently of quality and filthy breakdowns are plentiful. When the bass gets it’s time in the spotlight, such as in the beginning of “Fixation”, it’s dirty tone shines through. The drumming as well, is much tighter than on the first offering.
The songs are consistently good, but some such as “High Rate Extinction”, “All I Had (I Gave)”, “Existence Is Punishment” and “I Have Failed” tend to stand out as particularly well crafted songs. Their cover of Led Zeppelin‘s “No Quarter” is especially intriguing. (…) They omit any traces of psychedelia, stripping it down to a more basic (and obviously heavier) form. They are highly successful at this – it stands as one of the high points of the album.
With their second coming, Crowbar distill their sound into what would become the essence of their sound. (…) Kirk writes for the downtrodden and the hard living. He writes of the times when life gets the better of you and you feel like you are at the bottom of the barrel. This release is drenched in hardship. If metal ever had an answer to the working class blues, this would be it. This captures much of the themes prevalent in sludge, as well as providing the perfect example of what sludge sounds like in it’s purest form.
Deixe um comentário