This doesn't set my world on fire but I can't deny that it's a pretty cool sound Thou have got going here, some sort of down and dirty sludgyness with a bit of atmospheric influences- to be honest I'm surprised this isn't a lot more well known, as it sure as hell sounds like these guys did some market research.
The vocalist is the biggest drawcard, I reckon. The band supplies a lot of real heavy, simplistic, perhaps vaguely EHG-ish riffs, but it's that real beefy feral yowl of the dude behind the mike that really makes it. He sounds like he means it, but conviction aside it's just his tone that I love. Real pissed, has a real bite to it, it's good shit. All in all those last two sentences could sum up most of the band really- not all that technical or complex, but good, lowdown riffs played simply and with conviction. The production plays into this- raw but still well mixed with some good tones. Love them or hate them, it's hard to deny that these guys have their sound down pat.
'Course, like many a band out there these days Thou pull some sort of "transcend ma genrah" card with a bit of atmospheric tomfoolery mixed in with the rest of it. I dunno, works well, the big melodic riff/coda in "Out of the Mouth of a Fool" is pretty cool, but overall these parts do seem a little bit tacked on. Could've been developed more, or alternatively dropped for a few more massive riffs, either way would've been a bit of an improvement. No biggie though, songs still flow, riffs come and go in a manner which is pleasing to my ears. It's no surprise though that the best track here, the rather brutal closer, is best because it's just two or three riffs repeating over and over while the vocalist repeats a simple and catchy line over and over again.
Yeah, so this is pretty good, but it's not brilliant. Overall the whole thing is competent and I enjoy it, I get into it, but it's not the best shit in the world. Still, those with a liking for music that is slow and heavy would be advised to give their discog a bit of a look and see what they find.. I'm pretty keen on getting a full length or two, myself.