Now eleven albums into their career with their latest The Serpent Only Lies, the New Orleans stoner/doom/sludge legends known as Crowbar once again show why they are one of the most consistent bands on the heavy music scene. With original bassist Todd Strange returning to the band for the first time since 1999, he joins vocalist/guitarist Kirk Windstein, drummer Tommy Buckley and guitarist Matt Brunson once again as Crowbar looks to continue leveling mountains with their crushing music.
And crush they certainly do here on The Serpent Only Lies; as with any Crowbar release, no real surprises, just a plethora of massive, memorable riffs, Windstein's gravelly vocals, and a serious bottom end, which is just what you want from a classic Crowbar album. Tunes such as "I Am The Storm", "Falling While Rising", "The Enemy Beside You", "Embrace the Light", and the title cut cross that fine line between vintage doom, the attitude of stoner rock, and the bestial nature of sludge, the booming riffs of Windstein & Brunson just huge throughout in typical Crowbar fashion. "On Holy Ground" is pure majestic doom, the duo's twin guitar attack just a joy to listen to as the band slowly tear up the landscape with glorious waves of power & might, while "Plasmic and Pure" and "As I Heal" is just as potent as you can get, the riffs never ending, the tortured vocals tearing at your very soul, and the grooves smashing you from within.
In short, it's another vintage Crowbar album, no real surprises or deviations, but then again, do we really want that from this band? Certainly not, just let them do what they do best, and The Serpent Only Lies is another in a fine line of quality releases from this New Orleans institution. All hail the mighty riff!
Track Listing
- Falling While Rising
- Plasmic And Pure
- I Am The Storm
- Surviving The Abyss
- The Serpent Only Lies
- The Enemy Beside You
- Embrace The Light
- On Holy Ground
- Song Of The Dunes
- As I Heal
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