Featuring former members of Slipknot, Painface, Down the Sun, and Dirtnapp, On a Pale Horse tread territory that will be familiar to fans of such groups like Down, Corrosion of Conformity, Clutch, Black Label Society, High on Fire, and Crowbar, as they mix bone crunching heavy guitar riffs with pounding rhythms and husky Southern Rock tinged vocals. It's a formula that never ceases to put a smile on my face, and On a Pale Horse do an admirable job here on their sophomore self-titled release. Guitarists Jerry Spargur and Josh Brainard create a huge wall of sound on these 11 cuts, mostly delivering mounds of stoner rock riff-o-rama and wah-wah laced licks, while singer Aaron Peltz demonstrates an aggressive vocal flair that really works well on this type of material. Highlights include the rip-snortin' "Let It Flow", the wah-wah fury of "Warlord", the doomy, droning sludge of "Biding Time", and the full-tilt Southern boogie of "Eye in Hand". There's even a nifty psychedelic piece called "No Eagle Lies in Potters Field", which includes some neat trippy effects, and a crushing Black Sabbath-meets-Robin Trower rave-up called "Stand Up (All Rise)". In fact, if the doomy stomp of the Paranoid era Sabbath influenced "Penchant for the Divine" or the Masters of Reality sounding "Amplify the Circle" don't reel you in, have your pulse checked at the door. Stoner rock fans rejoice-there's a new player on the scene.
Track Listing
1) Penchant For the Divine
2) Amplify the Circle
3) King Brimstone
4) Let it Flow
5) Fistful of Desire
6) Warlord
7) No Eagle Lies in Potters Field
8) Biding Time
9) Ride the Wind
10) Eye in Hand
11) Stand Up (All Rise)
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