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Solid and all over the board musically and emotionally.-
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| Pentagram: Last Rites |
Doom Metal, Heavy Metal, Stoner Rock
Metal Blade Records
April 12th, 2011
- Treat Me Right - 2:32
- Call the Man - 3:49
- Into the ground - 4:21
- 8 - 5:01
- Everything's Turning to Night - 3:18
- Windmills and Chimes - 4:32
- American Dream - 4:32
- Walk in the Blue Light - 4:59
- Horseman - 3:38
- Death in 1st Person - 4:01
- Nothing Left - 3:36
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| Links |
| Review Information |
Release length: 44:22
Review posted on April 12th, 2011
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| | Overall Score: 8/10 |
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| Discography |
Discography covers all information available up to day of review and is updated if future albums are reviewed. |
| Full-Length(s): |
Pentagram (Relentless) (1985) • Day of Reckoning (1987) • Be Forewarned (1994) • Review Your Choices (1999)
Sub-Basement (2001) • Show 'em How (2004) • Last Rites (2011)
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| CD Single(s): |
Be Forewarned / Lazy Lady (1982) • Herricane / Earth Flight (1983) • Under My Thumb / When the Screams Come (1974)
Livin' in a Ram's Head / When the Screams Come (1979) • Relentless / Day of Reckoning (1993)
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| Demo(s): |
Demo (1975) • Underground Sound (1976) • Demo 1996 (1996) • Demo 1997 (1997)
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| Compilation(s): |
Human Hurricane (1998) • First Daze Here (The Vintage Collection) (2002) • Turn to Stone (2002) • First Haze Here Too (2006)
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| Live CD(s): |
A Keg Full of Dynamite (2003)
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| Review |
Pentagram. If there is a more well known band name in the Metal world, it's the likes of Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. Pretty much every fan of Metal has come across the name of this band at some point in their life, whether they happened across them on-line, in a store, through a friend, or are a fan. Considered one of the first true Doom Metal bands, the group's blend of traditional Heay Metal and the Doom Metal style has driven them throughout the years as one of the most important figures in Metal today. The group has had their off and on periods throughout the early years of their career, and since 2001 has started to release new material consistantly throughout the years. However, it's been several years now since the last Pentagram album, and for their seventh release, the band brings us Last Rites through their new home at Metal Blade Records. With the band's impressive track record thusfar, is it safe to assume Last Rites will be as strong an album as their previous releases?
Last Rites captures the quality of Pentagram's material nicely through a rather raw sounding album, one typical for many of today's throwback Heavy Metal acts, as well as with the Sludge and Doom Metal style, coming off a little more analog then clear digital, and heaving that muddy sound to it. None of the music here feels genuinely crushing, but still has a good heaviness to it comparable to early acts that inspired this style, such as Black Sabbath, having a solid Heavy Metal foundation to the music making the songs catchy and utilizing the old school sound to feel more like an early, edgier Hard Rock influenced album with a strong Doom Metal progression and chugging to the music. Of course, for Pentagram fans, this is traditional, and that's basically what the group gives us: More of the same, but that same style of music that fans should typically expect is solid, catchy, and often something to kick back and unwind to with your black light posters and favorite way to relax and get lost in the music.
Over the years, one of the things that had taken fans by surprise is the vocals on the recording going to a much higher pitch then normal. Well, that continues here and often comes off as a more Sludge Metal mixed with Hard Rock type of approach, kind of like early Candlemass, but typically has more of a range then what you would find there, and not as nasal either. The entire album is performed with clean singing of course, and for the most part retains that slightly higher pitch to it then a normal range, but not all song are like this. While that style does work well with the music featured on here, capturing a much earlier Stoner Rock and Heavy Metal vibe, the band does kind of step away from the tradition and incorporates some more deeper singing that almost feels more like the band trying to create some kind of western feel to the music with "Into the Ground". The deeper vocal range comes off more as a Blues meets Country type of singing with a Hard Rock aggression behind it with heavier riffs. It makes for an interesting song, but given how well everything had worked to that point, and how infectious "Treat Me Right" and "Call the Man" are with the simpler, slow chugging Doom and Heavy Metal combinations, it feels a little out of place at first.
This different vocal performance really changes pace after "Into the Ground", and it seems to take on more of a Hard Rock and Stoner Rock sense for a little while. It all really kicks off with "Everything's Turning to Night", which features lyrics that are more emotional, really playing up the heavy Blues influence of the release, but takes on more of a mainstream feel to the music, like something one might expect to hear from a band like Alice in Chains or Pearl Jam. It's a rather rockyu transition that really doesn't do well for the band, but "Windmills and Chimes" does manage to get the band on track with that path they were trying to reach, and it successfully comes off as a hopeless, dismal, emotional ride with slow paced music clearly taking advantage of the band's more Blues input on this release, and it sounds fantastic from it, really taking on the days of such legendary musicians who utilize such an influence to a more Rock influence such as Johnny Cash, though some tracks, like "American Dream", really does seem to capture more of a Stoner Rock foundation with how slow and depressing the overall atmosphere of the song can be next to the emotion in the vocals and lyrics.
The levels of emotion and energy in the songs also greatly differ. "Treat Me Right" starts the album off nicely with a resounding kick in the ass with a good amount of energy all around, which easily lures in the listener with it's catchy, yet crushing sound. Of course, "8" has some good energy to it, and "Into the Ground" is a very emotional track that has a very depressing and accepting atmosphere to it. Howver, one of the downfalls here are tracks like "Everything's Turning to Night", which isn't bad, but doeasn't truly capture the emotion or energy the band can bring to the recording. "Death in 1st Person" also feels that way, and actually comes off a little bland and generic, more like a filler track if anythinhg. "Horseman" has some emotion to the lyrics and performance, in the end it's just not as strong as it could have been, and nowhere near as strong a track as it should have been, coming off with that filler feeling again thanks to some more generic music and the lack of energy that honestly makes it seem like the band didn't necessarily put much work into the track. However, all that picks up for the closing song, "Nothing Left", which brings the album right back to the start of things with the old Heavy Metal and Doom Metal vibe that "Treat Me Right" and "Call the Man" give off, a welcome conclusion to the album, though very abrupt.
Despite some of it's flaws, Last Rites is a nice piece of Metal. The music seems to go all over the board though, branching between Doom Metal, Heavy Metal, Hard Rock, Stoner Rock, Blues, and it's interesting to hear the band incorporate so much, though it's nothing all that new to the group. While there's some shakey group with bad transitions between the heavier sounds and rock or blues sounds, the album brings enough solid material for fans of the band, as well as newcomers to really enjoy the release, and find plenty of reasons to come back and experience it again and again, though typically finding the skip button effective over some of the rocky and filler cuts of the recording. Either way, Pentagram have brought out another good release full of solid music that will please the listener, but there's no denying that it could have been a lot stronger then it is.
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Digital review copy of this release provided by:
Metal Blade Records.
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