The classic
heavy metal
revival of the mid-'00s seems to break down into two major categories: bands devoted to replicating one specific genre in minute, authentic detail -- be that '80s
thrash
, the
New Wave of British Heavy Metal
, or '70s
doom
-- and bands attempting to blend all of these, and other worthy subgenres, into a new-fangled gumbo all their own. Such is the goal of Athens, OH's
Skeletonwitch
, whose fabulously named sophomore full-length,
Beyond the Permafrost
, starts off with a steaming helping of vintage
sounds, then garnishes them with smaller but still clearly defined ingredients of
black
,
death
, and vintage
-- plus the aforementioned
N.W.O.B.H.M.
's unapologetically
metal
cover art alone is sure to earn the scorn of musical hipsters everywhere, but the sheer ferocity and white-knuckled velocity of swords-and-sorcery
anthems like
"Upon Wings of Black,"
"Sacrifice for the Slaughtergod,"
and
"Fire from the Sky"
will have those who stick around crying out for Mommy! If not that, then the fearsome vocals of
Chance Garnette
should do the trick, as he alternates between guttural
growls and higher-pitched
black metal
screeches, both performed with equal measures of wild-eyed excitement. Make no mistake, however, it's really twin guitar terrors
Nate Garnette
Scott Hedrick
who captain
's Man o' War, both dominating and defining the band's high-energy assault with positively carnivorous riffs, tightly intertwined with frenzied lead licks. And even though they rarely require more than two or three minutes to state their cases (much like similarly inspired Canadian brethren
3 Inches of Blood
),
do know how to operate at sub-light speed, bringing welcome variety of tempo and attack to adventure
quests such as
"Baptized in Flames,"
"East Into the to the Open Sea,"
"Remains of the Defeated,"
where those melodic,
influences really shine through. In the end, if there's one all-encompassing criticism that may be leveled at
's material, is that it's virtually all money shot, not much build-up, never mind foreplay! Nevertheless, it's difficult to resist the band's enthusiasm and intensity, so, foreplay or not,
surely qualifies amongst the best
retro-metal
releases of 2007. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia