Released by: Metal Blade Records

Release Date: Out Now!!!

Genre: Heavy Metal

Links: http://www.metalblade.com/necromancingthestone/

Line Up:

‘Big’ John Williams-vocals
Justin ‘Justin’ Wood-Guitars
James ‘Tone’ Malone-Guitars
Ryan ‘Bart’ Williams-Bass
Jeramie Kling ‘Diamond’-drums

Tracklist:

CrusherDownload
Bleed for the Night
The Descent
The Siren’s Call
Ritualistic Demise
The Old One
Rotted Reunion
Unfinished Business
Honor Thy Prophet
From Graves to Infamy
The Battle of Morningstar

Every band has a gimmick. If they say they don’t, then that’s their gimmick. Sometimes bands will try to cash in on a trend or come up with something tongue in cheek just for a lark, and though it might be interesting at the time, it becomes something forgotten as the years go by. When I heard the name Necromancing the Stone I was expecting something silly, probably mildly humorous (or deeply idiotic,) and no quality music to back it up. When I pushed play on Jewel of the Vile, my trigger finger was ready to pop it out at the first sign of stupidity (not that I am devoid of a sense of humor, but some bands are such a joke I can’t even comprehend saying anything at all about them, nice or otherwise.) Despite the ridiculous name (band and album) the music is surprising on multiple levels.

For starters, it’s actually a very serious album sonically despite the goofy name. It’s a fantastic melding of classic metal meets thrash meets almost a cult rock sound. Tracks like “Bleed For the Night,” “The Siren’s Call,” “From Graves To Infamy,” and “The Old One” are breakneck metal songs that dare one to get in its face…if songs had faces…they don’t have faces right? There were moments I felt compelled to start up a pit while jamming this album. Moshing doesn’t work in a car, FYI. The next shocker for me was to learn that the band is actually comprised of folks from other bands (current and past,) like Arsis, The Absence, The Black Dahlia Murder and Brimstone Coven (I knew I recognized that voice!) Though this is a very heavy album, it isn’t the same kind of heavy one would expect from the aforementioned bands.

I guess I’m just a judgmental asshole. I expected to probably not want to write about this album to really loving the hell out of it. Not only is Jewel of the Vile a fantastic album paying homage to all things metal, but it is also an interesting glimpse into the lives of the members of Necromancing the Stone, considering how drastic of a departure this album is from their usual bands, showing how, though they may not fully wear their influences on their sleeves, they clearly are deeply rooted in the old school metal world. Don’t let the name fool you: this is a mighty impressive album, full of everything that makes Metal great.

Reviewer: Chris Martin