Skeletonwitch – Breathing the Fire
Mark’s Review:
Right now is a revolutionary time for fans of thrash, because for the first time, a generation of metalheads raised fully on the thrash movement of the early 80’s are now forming bands and aiming to emulate or even top their idols. Experts point to bands such as Toxic Holocaust or Municipal Waste as purveyors of the thrash revival, but in my opinion, the leader of this movement is the Ohio-based band Skeletonwitch. If you’ve never heard these guys, but you’re into metal, you’re missing out on one of the best new bands out on the scene today. Their debut album, Beyond the Permafrost was tremendous, and their second effort: Breathing the Fire is even better. Now, with so many bands attempting to revive the style and feel of early thrash, what makes Skeletonwitch such an amazing band and Fire such an amazing album? Well, here are a few reasons that come to mind:
1) They play old-school thrash, but they do it with such ease. Skeletonwitch realizes that good thrash isn’t something complicated, they make sure when the snare’s tempo is under 200 bpm, the kick drums are over. The lyrics are dark and the riffs of Scott Hedrick and Nate Garnette arrive in an onslaught full of arpeggio sweeps and full-blast down-picking. These guys wear their influences on their sleeve, but they do a great job at blending them into a style and sound that’s heavy, extreme, and anything but dated. Seasoned metalheads can hear Dave Lombardo’s halftime drumbeat on Stand Fight and Die, as well as traces of old Death, Testament, Megadeth and even Diamond Head. Coupled with fantastic production from Jack Endino, they retain a raw, but clean sound you wish was around for Show No Mercy and Ride the Lightning.
2) The songs are short, and they fly by with such fury and precision that when they end, you’re left wanting more. Strangled by Unseen Hands and Submit to the Suffering just do not let up, packing so many memorable parts into a clenched fist aimed directly at your face. Skeletonwitch makes sure you get hooked early, and since there’s not a lot of fat to be trimmed, the songs are focused and don’t stray far from the goal. All in all, the album is 35 minutes of surprising moments and aggression that doesn’t have time to get old. It’s perfect for clicking “REPEAT” on your audio player of choice.
3) I mean, c’mon, just LOOK at these guys. These guys ARE metal! The band portrays a raw attitude insisting to keep pummeling you into the ground with speed and mayhem. There’s no radio single, no ballads, pretty much nothing that doesn’t deal with death, tormented souls, or war (aka “cool stuff”). These are the kids that sat in the back of high-school science class in a Nuclear Assault shirt drawing Dark Angel logos on their assignment notebook. I can’t picture Chance Garnette giving up his parsel-tongued delivery for something softer, and with a drummer that goes by “Mullet Chad”, you can tell these guys eat, sleep and breathe metal. Breathing the Fire indeed.
Mark’s Rating:
King says: “Skeletons? Witches? Fire? What’s not to love??? ”
Justin’s Review:
Well folks, Mark’s gone ahead and pretty much covered every single point that I wanted to make here, so I’ve decided to borrow a quick snippet from Skeletonwitch’s somewhat dated (but surprisingly accurate) bio:
Imagine a young Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, and Exodus slamming beers and cranking up Immortal records at a rager in 1985. Just when you think the keg is killed, Judas Priest joins the party with a fresh case of beer.
If that doesn’t sound like “metal” personified, than I don’t know what does. And that’s precisely what you’ll get with Breathing the Fire… Metal Personified. And who in their right mind wouldn’t love that? (Besides “concerned” Bible thumpers that is).
Again, to borrow tried and true words… WORSHIP THE WITCH!
Justin’s Rating:
King says: “Go directly the Prosthetic webstore… Do not pass go. Do not collect $200.”
