Four years since they issued their debut EP Goodbye Is When The Casket Closes, Diminished Fifth recording artist Orchid's Curse have finally delivered their debut album Voices – The Tales Of Broken Men.
The band's sound is an uncompromising and densely layered one, thanks in large part to the savage, dual guitar work of Brian Jones and Keith MacLeod who dish out a heavy dose of aggressive rhythm's and melodic solos, while the stellar rhythm section of bassist Kevin Mombourquette and drummer Bobby Webb provides the anchor. Josh Hogan's abrasive vocals alternate between death metal growls and tortured screams, so his Phil Anselmo inspired approach certainly suits the band's no holds barred style of sonic brutality. I like the production and mix job done here by Rob Corrigan as his line of attack was to bottle the bands live sound as much as possible, so you get that 'live off the floor' vibe permeating throughout the album. The drums in particular sound more tinny than usual, but it doesn't take anything away from the listening experience.
For all of their pent up, in your face aggression Orchid's Curse also demonstrates some prog-metal tendencies which can be found scattered throughout. The instrumentals "Above Moyobambo" and the mellotron washes in "It Was The Darkest Day We'd Never See" offers some respite from the carnage, while the final composition, the multi-faceted, two part "The Voice" could possibly be an indication of where the band is headed should they decide to go in a more prog-metal direction.
Voices – The Tales of Broken Men is a pretty lethal disc from beginning to end, confirming that Orchids Curse is definitely one of the most promising, young acts on the Canadian metal scene today.
Track Listing
1) Above Moyobambo - Euphoria
2) The Delicate Of Dying - Despair
3) The Workhorse Walks Alone – Regret
4) Rites Of Sacrifice - Hope
5) It Was The Darkest Day We'd Never See - Mourning
6) Let The Ashes Bury This Life – Anger
7) Shadows Of Imitation - Envy
8) …Of The Flesh - Ecstasy
9) The Animal - Contempt
10) The Voice
i) Into The Beyond - Apathy
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