Every year there appears a couple of heavy rock records that transcend the norm; that offer something different, distinctive; with superb song writing quality. This album is one of them, and I suspect it will reign supreme in the genre during 2007. Main protagonists in the band are Jim Ward (guitar and vocals) and Tony Hajjar (drums), both former members of At The Drive In.

There’s a sense of time and place that pervades this album. Take the opening song, Untreatable Disease with lyrics like “Hope is unborn memories/Untreatable disease…Home destroyed by consequences/A means finally to end…” accompanied by an angry vocal and crashing guitar riffs, following a whispered opening. It’s the gathering storm translated into a punishing rock song carried along by melody and passion. The intensity shown here dominates this brilliant heavy rock album. Crawl is a rampant song that rushes along like a semi-trailer dissecting an empty desert to arrive at its final destination. Again it’s borne on a strong melody and passionate performance. Taking Back Control possesses a more contemplative ambience and a set of powerful lyrics: “Another mark you left in hell/This cut, will run/But the guilt has just begun/Oh we ran ourselves ragged/All these broken backs, tragic… We try, you fail… Left blood on every door…” Atlas is the most beautiful song here with its slower pace and subtle instrumental arrangement. Lyrically, it’s another object lesson: “Well, I loved this town like you did/I’ll burn it to the ground/Packed your things and then/You were gone/Called a new place home.” The instrumental finale is stunning… There are 13 songs on the album and I’ll challenge anyone to find a weak link, they just don’t exist. While the mood is consistently one of anger and frustration, pace is nicely diverse with instrumentation adapted to the message (including the gentle piano notes used to close The Most Vicious Crime). There’s absolutely no doubt in my mind that this will be regarded as a classic heavy rock record in times to come. Poetic, brilliant and essential!

5/5