Resolution
Lamb of God
Roadrunner
Lamb of God’s New Year’s resolution is to lead the heavy metal charge into 2012. That is, if their newest and aptly titled album, Resolution, is any indication of what’s coming.
By taking a musically aggressive and incredibly ambitious approach, the groove-metal band continues to push the envelope with Resolution, the band’s seventh album.
Over the span of 14 tracks clocking in at just over 56 minutes, Resolution showcases the band’s progression since their last release in 2009, while still incorporating the best of their older musical elements.
Guitarists Mark Morton and Willie Adler have continued to raise the bar with their instrumental work, writing crushing guitar riffs coupled with blazing fast solos. The duo also give fans a glimpse of their softer side with acoustic guitar passages, like the one in “Barbarosa,” that display their musical versatility and the album’s diversity.
Randy Blythe’s vocals solidify his title as one of the best vocalists in the metal world. He uses screams, clean vocals, and even spoken word throughout the album, effectively bringing emotion to the music and keeping the lyrical content clear enough to understand. This is something that most metal vocalists have difficulty doing, but Blythe pulls it off flawlessly.
Chris Adler’s drumming also exceeded audience’s expectations by combining speed and skill to create some jaw-dropping drum lines.
Lamb of God even enlisted the help of an orchestra and a mezzo-soprano singer to craft the hauntingly beautiful “King Me,” their most ambitious track to date.
It’s clear each musician has honed his skills since 2009’s Wrath, but many tracks off Resolution harken back to the band’s earlier days, to the delight of long-time fans. “The Undertow” and “The Number Six” evoke the sound heard on celebrated earlier albums such as Ashes of the Wake. The band continues to use their groove-metal stylings while weaving in faster numbers such as “Guilty” and “Cheated.”
Since they rose to public consciousness in 2000, Lamb of God has consistently released acclaimed heavy metal albums. Combining heavy guitar riffs, excellent lyrical work, and incredible musicianship, the band has been a force to be reckoned with in the heavy music scene for over a decade.
And it looks like 2012 will be no exception.
