By: Charlie Butler
Album Type: Full Length
Date Released: Heavy Hound
Records
Label: 26/05/2017
In a genre often bogged down by
soundalike bands, Lord offer a sharp shot of adrenaline in the form of
“Blacklisted”. The band’s distinct blend of gnarly thrash and filthy sludge
deserves to see them go far.
“Blacklisted” CD//DD
track listing:
1.
Mile After Mile
2. They Lied
3. The Bandage
4. Blacklisted
5. The Heart of a Hero
6. Not Your Problem?
2. They Lied
3. The Bandage
4. Blacklisted
5. The Heart of a Hero
6. Not Your Problem?
The Review:
Lord don’t take
any prisoners on new release “Blacklisted”.
Over the course of 30 breathless minutes the Virginian’s unleash a barrage of High On Fire-indebted
stoner thrash dredged from the deepest swamps of New Orleans
The
opening trio of “Mile After Mile”, “They Lied” and “The Bandage” find the band in unstoppable full flow. Sections of
raging high-octane mayhem crash into the kind of huge sludge riffs Down
would be proud of, while a variety of throat ripping howls and barks wail
overhead. The title track sees Lord add bursts of dirty death metal and
furious blastbeats into the mix which bring an edge of nastiness to their
already grimy sound.
The
undertones of Crowbar’s
slow-motion misery that bubble under the surface throughout “Blacklisted” are given free rein on “The Heart of a Hero”. Lord
ably demonstrate that they can slow down to a languid crunch without any loss
of impact and still deliver a devastating blend of crushing riffs and epic
melody. The track peaks with a huge solo that distils everything that is great
about this release; a perfect mix of technical ability and ragged, untamed
energy.
“Not Your Problem?” brings the record to
a close in strong, anthemic fashion. It’s the closest Lord get to a regular song with
elements of straight-ahead punk’n’roll aggression mixed
in with their trademark deadly riffs. It provides a suitably powerful vehicle
for a rant on consumerism and not turning a blind eye to the world descending
into chaos.
In
a genre often bogged down by soundalike bands, Lord offer a sharp shot of
adrenaline in the form of “Blacklisted”.
The band’s distinct blend of gnarly thrash and filthy sludge deserves to see
them go far.
