Album Type: Full
Length
Date Released: 28/10/2016
Label: E.One
Music |
Steamhammer
Each
album is demonstrably different while maintaining a common thread so no record
is out of place within the discography. Stylistically, I would say that this is
closer to “Symmetry...” than “Lifesblood”, and perhaps is a little closer to
the band's earliest material, but at the end of the day: it's Crowbar. Where
this album sits in the band's discography will only be fully revealed over
time, but I can say that it has got better and better with each listen. What a
band. Appreciate them while they are here.
“The Serpent Only Lies” CD//DD//LP
track listing:
01. Falling While Rising
02. Plasmic And Pure
03. I Am The Storm
04. Surviving The Abyss
05. The Serpent Only Lies
06. The Enemy Beside You
07. Embrace The Light
08. On Holy Ground
09. Song Of The Dunes
10. As I Heal
02. Plasmic And Pure
03. I Am The Storm
04. Surviving The Abyss
05. The Serpent Only Lies
06. The Enemy Beside You
07. Embrace The Light
08. On Holy Ground
09. Song Of The Dunes
10. As I Heal
The Review:
Crowbar are 100% reliable. They
have never made a bad album. They have never gone commercial, gone thrash, gone
death, gone hardcore or deviated in any way from their uniquely satisfying
sound.
Generally
regarded as sludge, and New Orleans sludge at that, the band have been
operating at the highest level of quality for a quarter of a century now. Kirk
is still at the helm and now Todd Strange is back on bass (Kirk plays on the
album) after a career in something non-metal related. The album, as per, mixes
riffs of the heaviest weight (“Falling
While Rising”) with faster bursts of hardcore pace (“I am The Storm”). Most people familiar with the band have a
favourite Crowbar
album (some go with “Odd Fellows Rest”,
some the self titled, or “Broken Glass”
etc. etc.) but I can reliably inform you that this one could be a contender on anyone's
top spot.
The
last record, “Symmetry In Black”,
was a tour de force: this is just as good. They really haven't put a foot wrong
on this release. The doomy and spacey vibe of “Surviving The Abyss” is a welcome shift in dynamics and recalls “When Planets Collide” (and other
tracks) from the bands formidable canon.
Operating,
as they do, in a field of one brings its own challenges. The band have to find
ways of making things interesting; the line up has always been in flux, but
whether this is by design or default I don't know. Each album is demonstrably
different while maintaining a common thread so no record is out of place within
the discography. Stylistically, I would say that this is closer to “Symmetry...” than “Lifesblood”, and perhaps is a little closer to the band's earliest
material, but at the end of the day: it's Crowbar. The title track is as vicious and
melancholic as their best work, with Windstein's voice still a unique selling
point.
The
album is another focused and concise release; ten tracks of similar length
gives the right playing time for enjoyment and immersibility (running out of
actual words, so making them up!) and each track goes by at a fair clip. “The Enemy Beside You” is another
hardcore/sludge hybrid which spits some serious bile. Kirk is in his 50's now,
but isn't showing any sign of mellowing. Since leaving Down, he seems to have
re-focused on Crowbar
and brings some huge riffs and vocals to tracks such as “On Holy Ground” down the back stretch of the record. “Song of the Dunes” is even more
impressive, with a rather creepy atmosphere added to the mix.
By
the time of “As I heal”, the record
had absolutely won me over as yet another sterling piece of work from Crowbar.
Where this album sits in the band's discography will only be fully revealed
over time, but I can say that it has got better and better with each listen.
What a band. Appreciate them while they are here.
“The
Serpent Only Lies” is available now
Band info: facebook