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The Gauntlet: Red Chord, The |
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Red Chord, The Album Review
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Tracklist
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If you have heard anything from these guys in the past, you already know that The Red Chord are both highly creative and undeniably heavy. On "Clients", their first offering for Metal Blade, you'll hear a fantastic array of influences from this talented quintet. Disjointed rhythms that sound like Voivod on crack meet weighty grooves, stuttering polyrhythms and torrid blasts as this band proves themselves to be among the masterminds of metal melding on the scene. Powerhouse percussionist Brad Fickeisen propels the band with a standout performance on "Clients", throwing in plenty of rolls across the rack and kick drum bursts that fuel the entire operation of merciless orchestration. His technique is nothing short of brilliant on the grinding title track, ending the affair with an insane flurry. Both Kevin Rampelberg and Mike McKenzie are highly skilled axe wielders with an affinity for crafting dramatic guitar passages the takes The Red Chord's music in unexpected directions the harmonic tones in "Hospice Residence" squeal as the band's rhythm section tears through a ripping beat. "Lay The Tarp" delivers a straight ahead metal bashing before falling into a completely out of control onslaught. The shocking speed of the instrumental technicality on 'Black Santa' is markedly relentless and the unrestrained ferocity of "Upper Decker' will leave you on the floor, wondering what hit you. The stop action work in this track's chorus is very progressive for this style of metal, showing that the axemen are very thoughtful in their songwriting. The slam inducing "Love On The Concrete" is anchored by Gregory Weeks' rapid strikes on the four string, the song includes a rest where his skills are placed center stage. You can attribute much of the impact of "Clients" to studio wizard Zeuss who turns in a commendable job of knob turning, bring out the sheer fury behind the band's songs consistently throughout the record. As one of the most schizophrenic acts which combine metal styles, The Red Chord score big with this violent slab of musical destruction. Unabashedly aggressive, brilliantly textured and determinedly stimulating, this is certainly one of the top metal releases of 2005.
Review by: Erin Fox
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