SKELETONWITCH: WHAT LIES BEYOND THE PERMAFROST IS FIRE, BRIMSTONE… AND RIFFS!
Tuesday, October 13th, 2009 at 11:30am by Bob Cock
Skeletonwitch has been a welcome anomaly these past few years. Amidst a resurgence of thrash and 80s throwback nostalgia, the band managed to stand head and shoulders above most emerging, like-minded acts, no doubt many thanks to their inclusion of equal parts thrash, N.W.O.B.H.M. melody, black metal vocals and Nordic nods in the quintet’s riffing and tempos. Breathing the Fire, their new Prosthetic Records release, further codifies these styles and influences, and confirms The ‘Witch’s music as both original and refreshing.
Starting off the way one would expect a Skeletonwitch record to start at this point in their career, Breathing The Fire whips into no holds barred, balls-out action with “Submit to the Suffering,” two minutes of blackened thrashing riffery and a ripping solo. That song transitions straight into another barn burner, and possibly one of the record’s strongest tracks, “Longing For Damnation.” Meanwhile, the end of “Released From the Catacombs” screams of Immortal-style riffing, while “Repulsive Salvation” mixes those black metal influences with relentless, thrash riffs and double bass drumming, and “Gorge Upon My Soul” showcases not only Skeletonwitch’s musical competence, but their collective creativity, variance, ability to write memorable riffs, leads, and solos.
That’s not to say Skeletonwitch is running at breakneck speed for the entirety of Breathing The Fire. Thankfully, on tracks like “Stand, Fight And Die” and album-closer “…And Into The Flame,” the band briefly relents in favor of gobs of melody and tempo shifts, something that has always made Skeletonwitch stick out from the crop of high top Reebok-sporting retro thrash clones to which they are often unjustly compared. The band’s knack for writing quality songs, more than simply rehashing Exodus or Slayer for the n-th time, certainly helps, too. On top of that, there’s vocalist Chance Garnette’s gruff, gravelly, black metal-influenced vocals – a welcome addition to the mix, dually giving the band an immediately recognizable sound that simply screams “SKELETONWITCH!”
Rest assured, gang. The rest of the band slays, too. Put drummer Derrick “Mullet Chad” Nau up with new bassist Evan “Loosh” Linger (you can hear that bass in the mix!) and longtime guitar cohorts Nate “N8 Feet Under” Garnette and Scott “Scunty D.” Hedrick, and add a Jack Endino (Nirvana, High on Fire, Toxic Holocaust, and about a million other bands across musical genres) production job that sounds top notch, organic, and tight, and you’ve got Breathing The Fire: an album with the Skeletonwitch sound proudly stamped on it out front, and a definite candidate for album of the year, at least for this reviewer. And you can’t forget that cover art, either. It’s the whole package: fire and brimstone, skulls and slick, sick, memorable songs.
(4 1/2 out of 5 horns)
-BC
Pickin this up today after work. Fuck yes.
Fuck yeah bro me too
Got my shirt/CD yesterday and going to see them with BDM tonight! Hell yeah!
im hoping i wont have trouble finding this album today. i seriously doubt i will see it at best buy, but gonna giver a shot.
album of the fucking year, i was expecting some serious badassness but this album is overflowing with it. every thing i love in metal is in this album. killer riffs, ripping solos, great drumming. all the songs are memorable and leave you wanting to go back for more each time.
not sure how oceano gets a perfect rating and this one dosent. i call shenanigans.
Got mine at Best Buy, you can check the website and find which stores are carrying the disc. Pretty handy.
I picked up the album early at their show with Children of Bodom Saturday night. They threw in a free patch for me! They were really good live.
Was listening to this before I even saw that it had been reviewed. If I had to choose a favorite riff right now, it is probably the mid section of “Where the Light has Failed” or the intro to “Released from the Catacombs.”
Justice will not be served until I see a Guitar Hero: Skeletonwitch somewhere. It would have to come with a warning about getting carpal tunnel from overuse, but then true thrashers aren’t such pussies.
i was just thinking they need some skeletonwitch songs for download on rock band but their own game is a much better idea
Am I the only person who doesn’t like this band?
You are not alone. I am here with you.
I’m not into them, either. It’s too bad because the artwork really makes me want to buy this album.
Gay.
I loved Beyond the Permafrost and have listened to this album several times, but it’s not hitting me yet. The short song length is driving me nuts – anyone else feel the same way?
I suspect, however, that it will tunnel its way into my heart eventually.
Im loving this album at the moment, i cant say its better than beyond the permafrost just yet but then again it took me a while to fully appriciate that album for some reason so i’ll have to give it a few more listens. Sweet album though.
My shirt and CD arrived in the mail just a few hours ago. God I fucking love this album. Definitely album of the year so far. To me, it’s just a matter of how good Slayer’s new CD is.
I like this album quite a lot, but I prefer Permafrost — seemed to have catchier songwriting.
Got mine today. It is nothing short of boner-inducing.
I just got it on eMusic yesterday. It’s good – I only just got Beyond the Permafrost a few weeks ago and having not had the time to really get attached either of them, the new one is instantly more memorable than the last one. A lot of it sounds familiar though. Did anyone else think the solo for “Longing For Submission” sounds a lot like the solo for “Practice What You Preach”? Other parts sound like I might have heard them before on old Subterranean-era In Flames stuff. Also, I am torn on the short song lengths- it’s cool they buck the longer song trend, but they end so quickly I’m not ready for it.
Holy fuck is this ever good….. many thanks Metalsucks. Now I see what all the hype is about. Anything remotely black metal has never sounded this amazing
I saw them live the night before this came out. They Have a great show. I met the Vocalist. Hes really cool.