Album Type: Full
Length
Release Date: March
27, 2012
Label: The Innervenus
Music Collective
Tracklisting
1). This Beautiful
Infection 7:10
2). Oblivious To Ruin
6:07
3). Dead Sea 6:30
4). Long I Crawl 5:36
5). Coming Storm 4:42
6). Bedridden 5:37
7). Apathetic Life
4:47
Total Running Time: 40:29
Vulture is a 5 piece Sludge/Doom metal band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. Their music is described as hate fuelled riff worship, laced with pulverising drum/bass groove attack and throat shredding vocals aching of personal destruction. The following is their bio
After playing together for a number of years, guitarist Garrett Twardesky and drummer Kelly Gabany decided to expand their musical sphere with a new stoner rock/doom metal band, and thus VULTURE was formed. Frontman Buddy Smith was added to the lineup, and as the band began to coalesce around this core, Buddy introduced into the group guitarist Gene Fikhman and bassist Justin Bach, solidifying the group as a five piece in the summer of 2007. After a year of writing and playing shows, the band released a self-titled EP in the waning months of 2008, recorded in Virginia with the late Corey Smoot of GWAR.
As the following summer approached, musical differences lead to a departure of Buddy from the group, opening up a position for a new vocalist, which was quickly filled by longtime friend Justin Erb. Reworking of previous material and creation of new material began in earnest, as the band ventured forth to display their particular brand of “Steel City Sludge” to the masses.
Building a solid following in their hometown of Pittsburgh, PA, VULTURE was given the opportunity to record an exclusive track for the Innervenus Music Collective release “Iron Atrocity, Vol. 1” in early 2011. They delivered in spades with the excellent “Prick of Misery”, recorded in Akron at Colfax Alley Studios with James Curl of Complete Failure. This in turn led to further communication between the band and Innervenus, who approached the band to release their first full length album.
The band returned to Colfax Alley Studios in August 2011 where they managed to craft a full length album which showcases their ability to sonically crush skulls with a groove and style all of their own. This debut full length album entitled “Oblivious to Ruin” also features stunning artwork from longtime collaborator, Chris Smith.
The 5 piece
line up consists of:
Justin Erb –
Vocals
Gene Fihkman –
Guitars
Garrett
Twardesky – Guitars
Justin Bach –
Bass
Kelly Gabany –
Drums
Given the name
of the band, Vulture, the music on
offer here is a din of a rapacious nature, aggressive and imperious, preying on
your senses like a pact of ravenous wolves. Showing a tyrannous disregard of
the listener’s audible oppression, this Pittsburgh sludge/doom behemoth has
sharpened their raptorial claws and aim to feed on your carcass.
Looking at the
cover, do not be misled because you are indeed Oblivious to Ruin, unaware of the danger you’re in, because once
you press the start button, Vulture are likely to cause your eardrums irretrievable
harm.
Starting off the album, with a dark sound bite from the movie The Exorcist III (Thanks guys), ‘I believe in murder, I believe in pain, I believe in cruelty…’, it couldn’t be more appropriate, for this dark and disturbing blend of sludge/doom, Oblivious to Ruin is carrion so nasty that only a Vulture would feed upon it. This record is usurious, in that it goes beyond the realm of reason, due to the sheer volume of searing riffs and aural bombardment that is on offer. With Justin Erb, the embodiment of raw aggression, perhaps even the Devil incarnate. The band have unearthed a gem of a vocalist, with his sneering and sniggering vocal performance, Justin’s screams could well be the result of man in genuine pain, seemingly with his spleen about to explode. This track and indeed the album is a Beautiful but nasty infection, with the only cure being evisceration.
From the outset it is clear that the production values on this record are huge, everything sounds raw and nasty, what’s more everything can be heard in the mix, the left and right channel guitars resonating like a circular saw cutting through bone, the bass causing high-powered beams of electronic waves, resulting in the heating or burning of the skin. And if that wasn’t enough the drum work is just devastating.
Vulture charge out of the block with vicious aplomb, with Gene Fikhman and Garrett Twardesky’s, doing the seemingly impossible and creating a unique sound of their own. What they do to great effect is subtlety interweave between variations of painfully uncompromising riffs, with Bassist Justin Bach and drummer Kelly Gabany accentuating each putrid groove to disturbing effect, highlighting not only the viciousness of the sludge metal genre, but also the often misrepresented complexities of the genre too.
This album will indeed leave you bedridden; this album is Vulture’s own unique version of ‘hobbling’, the effect of which is to ensure that you, the listener are unable able to run way. This album is a work of abrasive beauty and highly recommended. A must buy for any fans of sludge/doom metal.
Big thanks to Kelly from the band and Scott Massie from the Innervenus Label for giving us the chance to review this amazing record. Check out the link below for details on the band and where to buy the record. You can listen to a sample of the album below too.
Vulture Bandcamp
Vulture Facebook
Big Cartel
Innvervenus Official
Innvervenus Facebook
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