The self-titled debut from Charred Walls of the Damned really surprised the hell out of me last year (even making my "best of" list for 2010), so I was psyched to see them keeping active by already following up with "Cold Winds on Timeless Days" (once again from Metal Blade Records). If you're unaware, the band is something of a metal "supergroup" featuring Richard Christy, Steve DiGiorgio, Jason Suecof, and Tim "Ripper" Owens unloading solid, energetic heavy metal that's neither overly modern nor simply looking to the past. Stylistically and in terms of the production values this material is very consistent with the band's debut (to the point where I'd still prefer DiGiorgio's basslines to come up in the mix)—offering a good range of tempos from surging midpaced rhythms to thrashy, high-speed assaults that are still loaded with epic melodies and slick leads. The songs are slightly longer this time, though. On the debut everything generally hovered between three to five minutes, whereas here that range is more like four to six minutes. And that might be affecting the overall energy level just a bit, because these songs aren't as immediately catchy and require a little more time to digest (granted there are still a number of great choruses that utilize really unique vocal arrangements). Opener "Timeless Days" throws in some classically influenced acoustic leads; "Forever Marching On" opens with rolling bass runs and faint synths before breaking into some surprisingly staccato riffing; "Guiding Me" and especially "The Beast Outside My Window" start off with ballad-y clean/acoustic passages, but then change direction towards some of the more aggressive riffing of the album; etc. I could see people failing to give this band a fair shot, but trust me, these guys are cranking out excellent straight-up, no bullshit metal. I'm a big fan, so I really recommend exploring both of their albums...
In my opinion the following are not the best songs on the record, but they're the ones the label has made available, so... while good for a taste, keep in mind that the complete album has more to offer!
Get It
Charred Walls of the Damned (CD)
Metal Blade Records (CD)
Amazon.com (mp3)
eMusic (mp3)
iTunes (mp3)
Comments
Wooow, I didn’t know they had released second album. And I didn’t buy the first one yet. What a douche…
11.15.2011 | By Carlos
Ok..I’m a little late here but who cares. This is a great fucking album and the only thing where you and I might disagree on is the track “Zerospan” (first song sample). “Zerospan” in my opinion is one of THE greatest metal songs of the year. It has a bit of everything for the masses. Well, except for people that like pig squeals because those people are just fucking stupid.
1.10.2012 | By Wooderson