Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 10/02/2007
Run Time: 36:20
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
thrash sounds, then garnishes them with smaller but still clearly defined ingredients of
black,
death, and vintage
heavy metal -- plus the aforementioned
N.W.O.B.H.M. Beyond the Permafrost'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
thrash 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
death 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 and
Scott Hedrick who captain
Skeletonwitch'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),
Skeletonwitch do know how to operate at sub-light speed, bringing welcome variety of tempo and attack to adventure
metal quests such as
"Baptized in Flames," "East Into the to the Open Sea," and
"Remains of the Defeated," where those melodic,
N.W.O.B.H.M. influences really shine through. In the end, if there's one all-encompassing criticism that may be leveled at
Skeletonwitch'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,
Beyond the Permafrost surely qualifies amongst the best
retro-metal releases of 2007.
~Eduardo Rivadavia, Rovi
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