Lord of Demise

I checked this band out a few years back because they were on Cruz del Sur and got compared to Tad Morose in the press release I read, and those two things were enough for me. Now we have their second album Lord of Demise. This is heavy metal with a definite stripe of doom in the songwriting, and the band just sort of plays this shit with gusto and heart, without really any gimmicks like other bands have.

I’m not even sure who to compare this to. It’s the sort of heavy/doom blend of bands like Argus or Doomsword, but this is much more pugilistic than either of those bands, tending toward shorter, punchier tunes. Like Tad Morose they have a base of crunchy riffs and an arcane mood with sonorous, soaring vocals overtop. And some sections when they do more upbeat parts have a Maiden vibe. But really Old Mother Hell is its own thing, powering out with bold, brassy riffs, marching tempos and the killer vocals of Bernd Wener, who just bellows these vocal lines out with a fuckload of conviction.

This stuff is relentlessly straightforward and just focuses on rocking the fuck out, so there’s not a whole lot to really analyze except the quality of the songs within. They just write cool songs – the opener “Betrayal at the Sea” comes at you hard, and “Avenging Angel” is an album standout with a monster hook and a barrage of rocking riffs. Wener knows how to belt out a great chorus line and just sells it well, giving you exactly what you need. The title track, too, likely won’t leave your head once that chorus kicks in. And “Edge of Time” is probably the album’s best tune with a haunting melody and a giant epic chorus. These kinds of songs show how goddamn good this band can be, and even if the others aren’t quite as strong, there are no weak points.

The production is very rustic sounding, very organic. I wonder how they’d sound with a more polished production, but maybe that would ruin the vibe. As is, it sounds like they’re playing live right in front of you, so that’s cool. I do wish they’d lean more on the crunchy trad metal side of the sound rather than the doomy parts, but at the same time tracks like the crushing “Another Fallen Savior” and somber closer “Finally Free” do have enough gravitas to keep you interested. It’s just that when you have a song like “Avenging Angel” you end up wanting more in that mode.

Even the lyrics are good – they’re simple but well-written and spin tales of violence and bloodlust and revenge and shit. Just solid. This album feels like a band that is about to break big and release something truly first rate. But Lord of Demise is already very cool. If you’re into badass, no bullshit heavy metal then give this a shot.