Sludge Metal
Independent Release
Release date : November 25th 2022
Line Up:
Brad King – Vocals/Guitar
Sean Skillen – Bass/Vocals
Simon Paquette – Drums
Tracklist:
1 – Revisionist History
2 – Loss Leader
3 – Blood Red Blood
4 – Regrets
5 – The Priest
6 – The Less Dead
7 – Flat Earth Society
8 – Irreconcilable
9 – Your Funeral
10 – Wounded Birds
11 – Dark Matters
Alienator hail from the aptly named Thunder Bay, Ontario. This is their sophomore effort having released their debut ‘Pariahs’ in 2019. Reading previous reviews and the press release they are described as Sludge Metal but appear to be much more than that.
A big sludgy bass line introduces the opener ‘Revisionist History’ which then bursts into a heavy groove metal bouncer with some black metal vocals, at only 2 minutes and 10 seconds its quickly and ends abruptly going straight into the huge ‘Loss Leader’ which is a dark and heavy grinder that has melodic passages between the verses then we get the monster ‘Blood Red Blood’ which ups the pace on an almost Maiden-esque rocker that has a huge chorus that you will be singing all day. The title track starts with a tribal rhythm from new drummer Simon Paquette then it opens up into a blast of punk/metal noise akin to Tau Cross before the doomy metal grind of ‘The Priest’ takes us to another punk metal blaster with ‘The Less Dead’. ‘Flat Earth Society is aggressive, chaotic, and full of vitriol which is bound to get things going in the pit then we come down on some blues/sludge with ‘Irreconcilable’ before we get going again with some nasty sludge on ‘Your Funeral’. ‘Wounded Birds’ is atmospheric stoner/sludge that rolls along then the final cut ‘Dark Matters’ is a huge slice of death doom.
Huge riffs, massive bass grooves, some excellent catchy melodies, and black/death metal vocals make this an interesting listen. The vocals will be an acquired taste but suit the soundtrack. Every song is different but they’re all raw, dynamic, and dark. These guys have hit upon their sound, and they sound great. If you’re after something heavy and different, then go for this because this is impressive.
Score: 8/10
Reviewed by: Smudge
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