Godsticks - 'Faced With Rage' Album Review

Tracklist:

1. Guilt

2. Hard To Face

3. Open Your Eyes

4. We Are Leaving

5. Angry Concern

6. Avenge

7. Revere

8. Unforgivable

9. Everdrive

10. Fame And Silence

'Faced With Rage' is the first music I've heard from Godsticks so I had no idea what to expect here. Heavy riffing, odd meters & quirky rhythms abound on this the band's fifth release, it's clear these guys have a lot of technical ability although this is not overplayed as it can be with some big Prog bands. The album feels like the clever riffs and adept musicianship on display are necessary parts of the songs, nothing feels like it has been added to show off and bolster anyone's ego. The instruments all sound meaty and the production is clean and crisp, so I do like the overall sound of this album as well.

I will admit that with a band like Godsticks putting the experience of hearing them into words is somewhat tricky and leaves one thinking "there's something I've missed here" so I stopped and started several times with this review, hoping to find a turn of phrase that encapsulated my thoughts on the band. This hasn't been entirely successful, it is perhaps a good thing as the band, although faintly reminiscent of other things do not sound too much like anyone else that comes to my mind, and yet they do have enough familiarity not to alienate a new listener, this is to their credit. The tracklist of the album is carefully thought out and ebbs and flows in a very pleasing way, the aggressive full-on sounds of "Hard To Face" are balanced out by more gentle moments including the sprawling "We Are Leaving".

What I would say is, if you like Progressive music, they are certainly worth checking out, similarly if you like your Hard Rock almost Industrial in places check them out too.