|
Forgiveness
Grudge |
|
With a sound as intense as their name, this quarrelsome quartet built on harmony and hostility rages forth with what on the forefront is the oddly titled "Forgiveness." Like a thick black cloud cover the heaviness consumes you immediately recalling the fist-clenching glory days of Prong and their continually bludgeoning riff-ready stomp and Rock. Grudge, also hailing from NY albeit a might up the line there, come across with the same well intended sincerity-where a song here like "Pissed Sick" falls right into line with a "Whose Fist is This Anyway" and that type of angle. Lyrically, we'll abstain for a moment as we're not out to further glorify gratuitous violence-the music does the talking here and does so at awfully loud intervals and yet without warning, the vocal lines come through more often than not with perfect clarity. Somebody did a Helluva recording job here-is this their first release anyway? Aside from the aforementioned "Pissed Sick" and their "fist does not discriminate" stance-brilliant by the way-I'm also reminded of the more soulfulness of a band like Sevendust or even Stuck Mojo without the rapping, on other tunes as "New Seed," "Carni," and the children under 17 not admitted without a parent-"Suck Factor." Put these guys right up there with those two previously mentioned groups and maybe add in an ounce of yesterday's Machine Head when they had the fire in their belly. Grudge is pure Rock the way it was always meant to be and delivered at 100% intensity without frills, filler or over-employed genre bridging tendencies. Released by 7N Records Review by Vinnie Apicella
[va85@columbia.edu] |