Antioch IV: Land of No Kings

Following a self-titled EP and pair of full-lengths (including a single), Windsor's Antioch is here to slay with Antioch IV: Land of No Kings, an enneadic arse-crippler of mammoth proportions which languidly builds up in impetus and clout before branding the listener with a red-hot farrago of 3 Inches of Blood-meets-Judas Priest emulation at its finest.

[Tell-tale sword-out-of-scabbard "swish" here, please]

As front mustang herder Nicholas Allaire jauntily espouses on everything related to "executions, death, war, and metal", Antioch trammels n' trounces all and sundry who stand, then lie before them, starting off with opener "Screams in the North", itself a mega re-kindler for 3IOB's iconic Fire Up The Blades, thanks to buddy's stalwart emulation of said not-so-pacific Pacific Canadians by way of uncouth, rugose scrowls ("screeches"/"howls") a la Jaime Hooper, yet only at the svelte behest of a valorously unambiguous, if not gregariously downwind, refrain liable to tear a vocal chord or four.

Alas, it has been sagaciously mentioned, to the fruit belt outlier's effect, that a pandemic lack of guitar leads induces wan indispositions of laconic air-guitar abeyance...but "fret" not, fellow solo enthusiasts, as, not only has Antioch polished its overall sound for the better whilst applying a rugged lustre devoid of bluster, but also, chock full of high-octane, hooking, marauding riffs which respect intelligent song constructs based on classic rock formats abound. That is, even if, midway through Land of No Kings, a low geared genuflector by the turgid name of "The Man Who Made The Mountains" ever-placidly reeks of overly-conceived, "epic tale" gone Merlin which could've made for a genial instrumental similar to Amulet's suitably ensconced "La Noche de las Gaviotas" soliloquy off the Britons' inevitable sophomore, er, The Inevitable War. All the same, and while it took a spell to grab me, its powerfully driven victory surge is far from Pyrrhic!

Back to what I meant, now; the guitar solos, though sparse, tightly wedge themselves in like so much arduously stoked gunpowder in cannons meant to influence, not quite, decide, the war. In less cryptic words, certain leads, like the one throughout "Screams In The North", as well as "Thunder In Hell" - a swell accompaniment piece to 3IOB's rock-fest router "Rock In Hell" - and on closer "One For The Grave", notably, weave portent undercurrents of darkly illuminated, NWOBHM-ish chutzpah which, short of stealing the show, precipitate it further towards its natural conclusion, an even more rampant and harmoniously churlish relay-baton taker.

Even if the first two tracks, including "Beware the Black Hand", leisurely meander in direction of more vociferous climes, get ready to rumble, soon, what with the eponymous self-title and anthem-ic, spiked club wielding tour-de-Antioch, "Hard As A Rock". Sure, its title is triter than anything - yet, nicely compliments the album's flow thus far, in a two-steps-forward/half one back manner, and so on. Considerably, axe man Alex Dupuis handles the lion's, or rather, only share of the guitars, in a stout, meaty fashion akin to Vancouver's Hellchamber or Brazil's Wild Witch duo, for example. In this sense, another strong comparison can be made to Kilgare, Ireland's Stereo Nasty, albeit with less 1980s horror chic.

Thankfully, this over-the-top chthonic cherry yields a top dog highlight in the aforementioned "Thunder in Hell", whose timeless, pummeling refrain represents everything the band is conveying relative to the here tacked cover art; a bit of Angel Sword and Visigoth styled brawn compounded by a rash and infectiously sophomoric energy strongly evoking 3IOB's unassuming heyday back at the turn of the new dawn/millennium. This consists of the iniquitously fatiferous Battle Cry Under A Winter Sun, circa 2000. On the boundaries on good taste - as well as metal erudition, to whichever degree - adepts of Germany's Metal Witch and Metal Inquisitor owe themselves a slice or so.

As essential sidebar, the roundly barreling battery retains the same iron-sided foundations as always, with the Rhyno bros, Jordan and Brendan, on bass and drums, respectively. Additionally, whereas 2015's Antioch II: First Strÿke possessed a rough and weather-beaten kind of raw countenance, and Antioch III: Wings and Warlocks firmly sticks out as the band's most enthralling and gripping go-getter (thanks to its super shard slap-dash-fullness and disregard for general motilities), this latest in the series showcases the dudes at their most disciplined, professional form.

Worth noting, at the outset, the CD version of Antioch IV: Land of No Kings features, as archaic bonus(es), a knavish gallimaufry of old-school reprises, elongating the blade (or draw bridge). Firstly, you've the jovial "Today Your Love Tomorrow the World" by the Ramones, "Death Valley Nights by Blue Öyster Cult, Alice Cooper's "Brutal Planet", and, lastly, JP's disco-ball evoking pounce-r, not to mention well-worked-over, hot rocker commodity, "Devil's Child". Suffice it to say, while I've yet to hear them, make a conducive attachment to the bandcamp edition.

Something big is brewing in Southern Ontario, and its "yours to discover". Neither am I alluding to Windsor's ceaseless, creepy hum or kitsch comeback on behalf of Hal Johnson and Joanne McLeod's "Particip-action"...