BEATEN BACK TO PURE (The Burning South) CD
After two releases for Retribute Records BBtP have signed with This Dark Reign, and once again BBtP are still way ahead of the competition. "The Burning South" forced me into a completely new and radical re-defining of the exsisting facts. I'm catapulted, vapourised. Breathtakingly dynamic, the album twists and turns like a ride on a rollercoaster, switching from breakneck southern metal to pummeling sludge-riffing with untramelled ferocity. If it's the chugging fury of "American Vermin" or "Running Out Of Neck" BBtP have harnessed the malign potential which they had always promised. Check out the doom-obsessed, bass crunching likes of "Pillars Of Tomorrow, Piles Of Yesterday" or the brooding "Where The Sewer Meets The Sea" recalled the intensity of 70's Lynyrd Skynyrd mixed with an aggressive metal-edge.
Ben's commanding voice is one of the main weapons in their southern'd skull-wrapped armoury and varied and on top as ever. And take a look at his lyrics!!! "The Burning South" is a simmering stew that draw influences from the likes of the aforementioned Skynyrd, Iron Maiden and brutalized thrash metal yet is also haunted by the spectre of raw country blues and doom. Here are more gorgeously melancholy parts that led into bone-breaking heaviness. The quieter, sensual moments are in better shape than before with a greater depth. The album significantly broaden the band's musical framework and when BBtP are really cooking, there are only very few acts who can match their compelling mash-up of bass-heavy Metal, Southern Rock and all that's heavy. The production is thick as a brick and each time this disc gets played more nuances unfold. No collection should be without this disc. Masterful!
(KK)