In battle there is no law
Sounding even more ugly, savage and downright nasty than the snarling mythological beasts that populate their lyrics, Chicago's Lair of the Minotaur bash out forty minutes of bloodthirsty carnage with all the wrath of a horde of marauding barbarians on their third full length, War Metal Battle Master. The band is something of an anomaly amidst the Southern Lord roster, kicking out crusty, oldschool mayhem that falls somewhere outside the boundaries of the doom and black metal the label has become known for.
In listening to the album, it's crystal clear that Lair of the Minotaur commit unspeakable acts of black worship at the altar of extreme metal's unholy trinity: Celtic Frost, Bathory and Venom. The band forsakes the trappings of modern metal in exchange for a sound that's as subtle as a broadsword to the face, with burly, bulldozer guitars and thundering drums that pillage and plunder everything in their path, leaving a trail of shattered skulls and broken bodies in their wake. Guitarist/vocalist Steven Rathbone conjures fist-pumping riffage and snarling tales of primeval atrocity while bassist DJ Barraca and drummer Chris Wozniak provide the rhythmic battering ram, imbuing tracks like "When the Ice Giants Slayed All" and "Doomtrooper" with an utterly asphyxiating sense of density.
The music is a raw, filthy and ferocious hybrid of black, death and thrash that's complimented by an appropriately grimy production scheme courtesy of ex-Buried At Sea frontman Sanford Parker, who lends a little of his former band's impenetrable heft to War Metal Battle Master. The album's calamitous, sludge-ridden sound evokes the grim and unpredictable atmospheres of the battlefield, and it's this rough-around-the-edges sonic palette that gives the recording its character. Lair of the Minotaur aren't interested in wowing anyone with slick production values and overly technical musicianship, there are no blastbeats or sweep-picked guitar solos the be found on War Metal Battle Master, only a relentless intensity backed by colossal heaviness.
Lair of the Minotaur's sound might be rooted in extreme metal's primordial ooze, but the crushing might of the performances on War Metal Battle Master prove the band is far from a tired re-hash. The trio has harnessed the sound and fury of metal's elder gods and managed to control the chaos long enough to make it their own, releasing an album that can proudly challenge the likes of Welcome To Hell and The Return in a Gladiator-style duel to the death.
| Reviewer: Josh Haun Added: March 28th 2008 |
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