The Sword - Gods of the Earth (Kemado) Eric Nielsen 4.3.8
The pleasure of The Sword drops in on you like a napalm bomb with repetitive riff power, a modern throwback which aims to please and drops it with ease. Memories flood upon first listen. It sounds to me like the best of the Bay Area early 80's tied to the heavy modern tones utilized in dark death metal. The singing is reminiscent of the classic realized sounds unfettered of baggage, alone in it's pleasure.

Heavy yet approachable, in darkened skies this album opens a door into the inside of the machines. Other bands are doing this sound and it's always hard for me to pull one out to the surface, away from others.

What does make a good album of this nature? Is it the guitar tones, the originality, the lyrics, the leads that grab you? The guitars pop in a way that many of these bands fail to do. It doesn't just scream infinite notes, but rather phrases and intertwines with the story, as do the dynamics of the tracks.

One of the best things about this album is the way it rides up and down, cuts short, stops on a dime, opens with minimal phrases, and adds Titan sounding guitar pleasure. It often dumps into the chug chug guitar that is mixed great and is the real drive for the record.

The singing throwback just kills. So Sabbath around the end of Ozzy and the beginning of Dio. Passion abounds through tracks titled, The Frost-Giants Daughter, Lords, To Take the Black, and How Heavy This Axe.

The lyrics transport you to an ancient tome of weapons and wizards. What they do, they do well. It may not be you, but it is them. An honest them. Full of angst, pleasure, anger, adventure, and acrimony. This is a palette cleanser and a mind bender. Filling your head with darkness and flowing through your bones in the harshest heady ways. Meld your inside to The Sword, for God so loved the world he gave his only begotten sword. Pierce your heart with The Sword, go blind with The Sword.