Lamb of God - Wrath

It may come as very little surprise that deep in the recesses of my heart nestles a metalhead, though I am loath to use the term due to the somewhat misappropriated and negative connotations associated with it.  Nevertheless, in my wild youth I sported long hair and could be found throwing myself around at small-town Friday evening concerts, usually dancing and almost definitely inebriated.

I was also apparently deeply pretentious (Circa 2006)

Around the time I began to ebb away from that phase I was introduced to a band by the name of Lamb of God, namely through their album Ashes of the Wake.  I thought the groove-laden riffs, precise percussion and guttural yowls to be quite thrilling at first but slowly, through a desire to explore other genres over anything else, I let my interest in the band fall by the wayside.

It wasn't until perhaps two months ago that I decided to tune back in to heavy metal properly once more, a decision I am glad to have made, as no other music seems to make me feel that ineffable mix of excitement and energy it is known for.  Don't get me wrong, other genres have bent my mind in all manner of amazing directions but for me, metal hits that sweet spot, at least for now.

I regained interest in Lamb of God after watching a superb documentary about the band's legal struggle following the singer's accusation of injuring a fan at a show, leading to said fan's eventual demise.  It painted the band as very likeable, down-to-earth and emotionally diverse; the polar opposite of what their musical side portrays.  The soundtrack to the documentary was composed of the band's back-catalogue of songs, most of which I failed to recognise.  You can see now that my curiosity was piqued and I simply had to sate my need to familiarise myself with everything that they had recorded since 2005.

Of the three albums that I had lagged behind on (Sacrament, Wrath and Resolution), their sixth offering, Wrath, was the one that jumped out at me and aurally pummelled me into submission; not to say the others lacked in quality, but this one gripped me by the ears and totally arrested my attention for its duration.

The cover alone warrants high praise, or fear, depending on your mindset (Source)

The album opens with a near-saccharine southern-tinged acoustic number, which progresses into a lead-guitar intro before launching your head-first into the album proper to the sound of 'In Your Words'.  Within this one track, LoG not only reminded me why I liked them in the first place but showed me why I'd continue to like them even more than I had previously.  The vocal styling and range of Randy had improved vastly, which is saying a lot seeing as he already sounded brutal two albums previous.  The guitars sounded cleaner and more precise; the drumming was as punchy and tight as ever, whilst retaining a somewhat raw edge that was refreshing to hear.

I found myself tapping along and mouthing the words to several tracks, even upon first listen, which to me was indicative of a solid album which I'd no doubt enjoy many times over.  Since that first listen it has been the soundtrack to my commute for 2 solid weeks and I am yet to tire of it.  In fact, subsequent plays have only sought to strengthen my adoration for the album.  Personal stand-out tracks are the blistering Contractor, a track which seems to effortlessly set up the perfect circle pit were it played live; Broken Hands, which contains sharp, melodic riffs, plus it is a true showcase of Randy's sheer vocal talent, and finally the album closer Reclamation, a seven-minute journey which sees the tempo shift a few times, bookended by haunting acoustic guitars and the sound of waves crashing on some desolate shore, true to the track's subject matter pertaining to our self-destruction and that of the planet.

They're a happy bunch of lads, really. (Source)

I can honestly say that this album will nestle quite comfortably in my classics collection, rubbing shoulders with the bands I fell in love with back when I was a greasy drunken teenage mess, when going to live shows and expressing myself in the most energetic and ridiculous manner I knew possible was an average weekend.  Typically, I'd choose this point in time to decide that I'd like to see Lamb of God live, only to find out they have gone on hiatus, probably until I ebb back out of my heavy metal phase.  I remain the optimist, as I am sure it won't be long until both I and the band return to the fray once more to create a beautiful mess out of a heaving mass.

Finally, here's a fan-made video for Reclamation, it is pretty awesome.

 - Sam