Even as a staunch supporter of Richmond’s metal titans
Lamb of God, their last album
Wrath
simply didn’t compare to their previous releases. The aggression was
there in spades; it just sounded more like a b-sides collection to
Sacrament than
anything else. The band had found themselves at a huge crossroads in
their career – fade into obscurity like countless other New Wave of
American Metal bands, or continue to remind all other metal bands why
they’ve been one of the most successful acts in the genre’s recent
history. With
Resolution, Lamb of God is undoubtedly back. The
album is dripping with groove, unrelenting drums, and one of the most
confident-sounding albums in the band’s career.
Right off the bat, the band instantly obliterates any and all riffs
from their past album. “Straight for the Sun” shows the band delving
into sludgier territory, resulting in the heaviest riff since 2003’s
“Vigil”. Entering soon after this is vocalist/current presidential
candidate Randy Blythe, showing that his vocal cords have only toughened
with age. Blythe’s vocals are even more guttural than before, while
still being one of the more understandable screamers in metal today.
You’ll also get a few “sung” choruses in songs like “The Number Six”,
harkening back to
Pantera’s Phil Anselmo.
From a musical standpoint,
Resolution is a mosher’s wet
dream; crossover-thrash riffs intertwine with ripping guitar solos and
the band’s token half-time groove. It’s a formula the band has long used
to great success, and while this may seem to raise some eyebrows from
the skeptics, fear not! Lamb of God aren’t just repeating themselves,
but rather expanding on a sound that is now undeniably theirs. “The
Undertow” showcases one of Mark Morton’s best guitar solos to date.
“King Me”, the band’s longest song to date, shows the band delving into
…And Justice For All-esque
prog-metal while also being backed by an orchestra. Songs like
“Invictus” and “Terminally Unique” even experiment with a mathier
approach in the song’s chorus, courtesy of Chris Adler’s absolutely
dominating drum performance. While these newer elements may not please
die-hard fans of the band just looking for a reason to hop into another
circle pit, there’s still loads of that (“Cheated” is a mosher’s
delight). The band’s first single for the album, “Ghost Walking” is
everything fans have come to expect from Lamb of God. Hell, even the
opening riff does sound quite a bit like “Redneck”.
One of the best qualities about
Resolution is its sense of
balance. Lamb of God knows what their fans expect from them, but still
continue to push the envelope and not fall into homogeny like the
Shadows Falls and
Killswitch Engages
of the world. In a new age of metal flooded with groove-junkies and
djent-clones, Lamb of God show they can get as technical as the rest of
them, but make a song that will get stuck in your head on the first
listen alone.
Resolution has renewed my love for this band, and should please any old fans as well. The first awesome metal album of 2012!
Rating – 8.5/10
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Lamb of God has forged a career that has
had them labeled as one of the premier acts in American metal, and they
have backed it up ever since they trampled into the mainstream’s sights
with 2004’s “Ashes Of The Wake.” Every album since then has had to live
up to the benchmark set with “Ashes Of The Wake,” and “Resolution” is no
different. The band’s sixth record has them going back to a rawer
production after the mixed reaction to “Wrath,” while juggling their
old, groove metal sound with a couple of interesting diversions.
“Resolution” is almost exactly what any Lamb of God fan would expect at
this point; whether that’s a bright spot or a criticism depends on one’s
opinion of the band’s catalog.
After over a decade of constant performing and writing, Lamb of God’s
ruggish groove metal is like second nature. So it’s not a surprise that a
majority of the tunes on “Resolution” are well-rounded. “Desolation” is
destined to be the band’s new live anthem, with its shouty chorus
having the capacity to translate to a crowd of beer-swilling, rowdy
metal heads. “Guilty” smacks the listener in the ears with a lead pipe
of dissonance, and the band makes sure not to temper their rage for a
moment of brevity.
“Resolution” is another chapter in the evolution of the band as
musicians. Every album since “New American Gospel” has seen some level
of improvement, whether in the riffs or vocally. Guitarists Mark Morton
and Willie Adler continue to work on handing out tight harmonies and an
influx of guitar solos. The rhythm is still integral to the cataclysm of
noise, especially the precision assault doled out by drummer Chris
Adler. Randy Blythe’s vocals are feeling the effects from years of
screaming, though his piercing tones find a way to rip on the government
and human fallacies with force.
As songwriters, the bands finds the most worth in pulling back from the
easily obtainable groove metal and challenging their formula. “Straight
For The Sun” takes a page out of the sludge/doom genre. It’s compelling
and one of the heaviest songs the band has done to date. The ambitious
“King Me” dabbles with orchestration and operatic female vocals, while
having an epic presence missing from songs like “Reclamation” and
“Beating On Death’s Door.”
It’s reassuring to hear Lamb of God not satisfied with belting out 10 or
11 version of “Laid To Rest” every album, but the band holds back on
“Resolution.” Every time the band tries something new, like “Straight
For The Sun,” they revert to their groove metal haven. Having one song
with a molasses-like tempo that could build to a fresh dynamic, and then
not following up on it for the remainder of the album, is
disappointing. The presence of 14 songs - the most on any Lamb of God
album so far - is also a drag on the album’s pace, especially once it
heads to the hour mark.
For Lamb of God, “Resolution” marks a turnaround from the underwhelming
“Wrath.” It’s crushing metal by five guys who have been tolling it out
since 1999. Experimentation has never been a rousing feature before, but
the instances they are used (acoustic intro on “Ghost Walking,” the
aforementioned “Straight For The Sun” and “King Me”) turn out to be the
most memorable songs. “Resolution” will make the fans happy, and leave
the detractors pissed off as usual.
Highs: Groove metal sound
still hits hard, a few twists to the standard formula, another strong
performance by guitarists Mark Morton and Willie Adler
Lows: Drags on the last few
songs, seems like the band holds back from stepping into new territory,
Randy Blythe attempts to sing on "Insurrection"
Bottom line: An improvement over the uneven "Wrath," though it's more of the same from Lamb of God.
Rating – 8.5/10
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Lamb of God was one of the first metal bands I truly loved.
As The Palaces Burn and
Ashes of the Wake
blended aggressive riffs, furious lyrics, and enviable musicianship in a
way few bands could match. Even though their subsequent albums seemed
to pale a bit in comparison, I still found certain tracks and moments to
thoroughly enjoy. My appreciation for this band is massive, which is
what makes
Resolution disappointing to me.
It’s more of the same in a lot of ways, and the risks that are taken
don’t fully live up to their potential. While it’s not a huge step down
from their last record, the pitfalls from
Wrath seem to be exacerbated throughout
Resolution instead of being, well,
resolved.
Resolution does not live up to its name, and at its worst, it plods through mostly uninspired riffs, formulaic lyrics (the worst of any
Lamb of God album, hands down), and predictable structures. At best,
Resolution
does not stray far from the beaten path established over the band’s
tenure, and there’s enough hostility and energy to keep die-hard fans
occupied.
There are redeeming aspects to take into account, but they are not
enough to completely save this album. While it’s less glossy and
commercial than
Sacrament, it falls short in comparison to the rest of the band’s discography in almost every aspect. It’s
Lamb of God, after all, so they’re still trying to sound like
Pantera,
but when they push the tempo of certain tracks, there are flickers of
sonic evolution. Unfortunately, Chris Adler’s drumming has become
unbelievably predictable, and while he will always be one of my absolute
favorite drummers, I miss the innovation and groove that used to be at
the forefront of his playing. It’s partially the production; the drums
almost sound programmed, and the snare is buried in the mix while the
China cymbal drowns out lower frequencies. I won’t say that I’ve
“outgrown”
Lamb of God by any means, but my connection
to their music was created through their older material, and the newer
content has failed to resonate as deeply.
Resolution represents the pinnacle of this realization, as much as it pains me to admit.
The album begins with a sludgy and powerful riff (“Straight for the
Sun”), supercharged by one of Randy Blythe’s signature screams. It’s a
hell of an opening, and the vocals are superbly visceral, grabbing the
listener by the throat. Then there’s a somewhat awkward drum solo of
sorts, leading into “Desolation”. One of the better tracks of the album
(but containing some of the worst lyrics of any
LoG song
ever), it features a very standard
Lamb of God
feel without sounding too stale. The guitar tone on the record is
phenomenal, and Mark Morton and Willie Adler demonstrate their
incredible chemistry and ability time and time again.
Resolution continues fairly unsurprisingly,
before the band completely rips itself off with “The Undertow”. It’s a
mixture of every signature trick in the
LoG book, and
while it goes down smoothly enough, it’s laughably unoriginal. Next up
is the appropriately titled “The Number Six” (guess which track it is?),
which features some of the only audible bass on the record, as well as
the irritating repetition of the painful line, “You’ve dug your own
grave”. There’s much better range in the dynamics on this track,
although the transitions between quiet spoken-word interludes and
thundering walls of sound are somewhat awkward.
The rest of
Resolution neither compels nor
alienates, sticking to typical arrangements one would expect from the
band. “Terminally Unique” doesn’t exactly live up to its name, but it’s
damn heavy and the guitar work is exceptional. “To The End” contains a
thrashy and upbeat riff with some fun pinch harmonics, and it provides a
change of mood without sacrificing the immensity of sound that
Lamb of God
is always striving for. The closing track, “King Me” is a unique piece
of work, but their bizarre foray into symphonic metal is a creative risk
that does not come to fruition. The string patches sound like they
crawled forth from the depths of MIDI hell, and they distract from the
harmonic structure rather than improving it. I fully believe that if
better sounds had been used, I would be a much bigger fan of this track.
As it stands, they screech and strain against the guitars, causing
uncomfortable dissonance. Even though it doesn’t quite deliver, I
appreciate
Lamb of God for pushing against its own conventions, and perhaps future experiments will yield more positive results.
So, this isn’t
Lamb of God’s best work. Not by a long
shot. But it’s not a travesty, either. Despite exploiting their own
blueprints in an attempt to expand their empire, there’s still a part of
me that believes
Lamb of God isn’t down for the count.
Resolution may cost them a few fans, but it is not nearly as polarizing as recent releases from bands like
Opeth and
Mastodon. Maybe that’s part of the problem: If
Lamb of God
takes larger risks, perhaps they’ll be able to reap greater rewards.
Listeners have loyally fed off the band’s formula for the past decade,
and the taste is getting stale. Here’s hoping that their next album will
take full advantage of the band’s talent and fortitude, without abusing
their brand.
Rating : 6,5/10
official site : http://www.lamb-of-god.com/
The guitars are the guts of Vallenfyre and the ridiculously heavy riffing is admirably rendered by Hamish Hamiliton Glencross (My Dying Bride) and a gentleman simply known as Mully. The tone is gigantic,
hideous and the riffing will give you the sensation of being run over
by an armored column, which later backs over your corpse just to be
dicks. Gregor Macintosh’s (Paradise Lost) death croaks
are low, phlegmy and very convincing (this album is his attempt to work
through some personal tragedy and loss). His bellowing, along with the
relentless sledgehammer riffing will cause you to feel a touch of bell’s
palsy in and around the facial area (it’s just a partial paralysis).
The production is solid, nicely raw and basically serves to amp up the
guitar buzz to insane levels of sonic abuse. It’s distortion for
distortion’s sake and I never argue with that (it’s death metal, after
all).
In "Mountain Of Horror" the guitar tone and keys give it that great
vintage psychedelic rock sound. At times I feel like I'm listening to a
black metal version of Can. So inspiring to hear someone mesh these
styles together so cohesively. "Let Your Devil Come Inside" has some
unique clean vocals that slightly remind me of Micheal Akerfeldt. The
violin in this track really sets the mood. "Kill your mother while your
still in her womb"... haha what a ridiculously awesome line. The drums
are an eclectic mix of styles that fit each mood of the music perfectly.
He knows when to be intense and other times reserved with tones of feel
and syncopation. "Against The Curse, We Dream" is one of those
progressive tracks that draws your thought process out. "When All Is
Black" is like Opeth meets a jazz symphony with a mix of clean and
wretched vocals. At the end of "Into The Gates Of Time" there is ambient
pond noise for almost three minutes. Unique idea that is well placed on
the album and is relaxing. The large swell of the hum of insects and
amphibians at night is entrancing and cleansing. Throughout the album
there is a wide variety of vocal styles. There is also a handful of
fantastic rock solos pitter pattered throughout the record. Any true
guitar lover would fall head over heels for this record. Even the bass
tone and riffage is spot on. 
