Lamb Of God - 'Into Oblivion' Album Review

1 hour ago
4 min read

Tracklist:

1. Into Oblivion

2. Parasocial Christ

3. Sepsis

4. The Killing Floor

5. El Vacio

6. St Catherine's Wheel

7. Blunt Force Blues

8. Bully

9. A Thousand Years

10. Devise/Destroy

American metal titans Lamb Of God are back after four years with their tenth studio album 'Into Oblivion', released March 13th via Century Media & Epic Records.

'Into Oblivion' throws you right in at the deep end wit a powerful and intricate double-layered riff from Mark Morton and Willie Adler, backed brilliantly with a pounding drumbeat and bassline from Art Cruz and John Campbell respectively. And then come the signature growls from Randy Blythe, with the powerful lyrics from Blythe and Morton, which Blythe stated in an interview with Adam Kennedy " [Mark] started the song the song and, originally, from what I understand from him, from his initial verse and chorus, was much more an internal-looking song. It was much more looking at the inner psychological battles that we all fight in one way or the other, not so much external chaos. When I got the song, I definitely turned it more towards external chaos. So, the song kind of has two meanings."

'Parasocial Christ' explodes straight back in with some incredible double kick work from Cruz, and more intricate riffs mixed masterfully within a more chuggy style. There are some phenomenal highs from Blythe within the track, especially in the second chorus, which then gives way to an extended solo that just hits all of the right notes.

'Sepsis' is a slower, grittier affair, opening with an extremely strong, almost hypnotic bassline from Campbell to back some very aggressive quasi-spoken word from Blythe before returning to his signature screams. Feels very influenced by the punk bands Blythe grew up on, which is apt considering the record was partially recorded at Total Access Studio in Redondo beach, with Blythe stating in the Adam Kennedy interview "Then I walked in, and I looked on the wall and the little room and the entrance and the foyer and you see several hundred records. You see Black Flag and Descendants and Husker Du and Minutemen and St. Vitus. I was like, oh, I'm home now because that's the world I came from. I don't come from the heavy metal world. I grew up listening to a lot of punk rock".

Picking the pace right back up is 'The Killing Floor'. This feels like 2004 'Ashes Of The Wake' era LOG with an almost black metal quality to some of Blythe's screams. The control of Cruz's drumming is absolutely masterful, as is the stop/start guitar work provided by Morton and Adler that echoes the drums in the bridge. It shows the experience that each member of the band has in spades.

'El Vacio' slows things down again with an extremely atmospheric intro riff, the bass and guitar dualled is a phenomenal sonic choice, once again it sounds more akin to the punk records that have inspired Blythe, before transitioning back into the more typical groove metal sound fans love from LOG in the chorus. It's almost haunting, and shows a more vulnerable, personal side to the band, mirroring the writing of the title track, as mentioned previously. A great decision to have this be the halfway point of the record.

'St Catherine's Wheel', once again, picks things right back up. It's almost dripping with hostility and aggression, feeling almost like a spiritual successor to 2006's Redneck in terms of its sound, the moments of tritones in the riffs acting like a sonic warning. Again, some stellar drum work from Cruz, who works so well with the other four members of the band, despite only joining them 7 years ago.

'Blunt Force Blues' is a 90s groove metal track through and through, to the extent that it wouldn't sound out of place on iconic albums like Vulgar Display Of Power. It has such a driving power to it, this time led by Morton and Adler, with Cruz providing some flourishes that don't take the spotlight but serve to enhance everything else, and it's yet another vocal masterclass from Blythe.

'Bully' brings a more modern flavour to the party, whilst still blending it with that unmistakable LOG attitude, it's current While She Sleeps and Gojira shaking hands with Sepultura and Pantera in the absolute best way possible, with yet more virtuosic performances from each member, perfectly in sync with each other.

Penultimately comes 'A Thousand Years', which turns the groove up to eleven with a wandering, snaking intro bassline from Campbell, given his space to shine by Morton and Adler, and then trading throughout the track. Blythe feels like a man possessed, once again harnessing the wide spectrum of his influences. And Cruz's addition of cowbell is never a bad thing, especially in a track as groovy as this.

Final track 'Devise/Destroy' suckers you in with a gentle, atmospheric intro, before kicking it up several gears, with Morton and Adler phasing between synchronised and clashing riffs, complimenting each other perfectly, solidly backed by Cruz and Campbell, with yet another blinding performance from Blythe, proving he can still keep up with, and even perhaps surpass, the newer generation of metal vocalists. It wraps up the album in a brilliant sprint to the finish, but does not feel rushed.

To boil it down, this is a fantastic record. Blythe himself said "I think with this record we had some more time in between it and the previous record. [...] The last record was supposed to come out in April 2020, but COVID happened [...] And nobody was touring, and our record label was like, well, we'll take another record. So, we immediately wrote another record. And to me, it felt rushed. [...] But this one, there's more time in between. And I like it better than the last one.", and the time, the passion that the band have put into the process of 'Into Oblivion' is extremely apparent. Not one decision, one note, feels out of place, and in my opinion, this will go down as one of their best albums to date.