The vast majority of what I'd read/heard about Charred Walls of the Damned leading up to this album's release was simply hyping the band as the latest outing from former Death/Control Denied, etc. drummer Richard Christy. Now, that was enough to pique my interest, but I've been somewhat back and forth on Christy's drumming in the past, so combine that with a mediocre band name and pretty crappy cover art, and—being the picky asshole that I can be—I basically lost interest. Thankfully a friend of mine posted a blurb on Facebook (of all places) mentioning the full lineup of the band—Steve DiGiorgio on bass, Jason Suecof on guitars, and Tim "Ripper" Owens handling vocals. Shocked and impressed, I immediately went to check out their self-titled debut (released by Metal Blade Records).
All I can say is: I love it. My only complaint, which I'll get out of the way now, is that you can barely hear any bass in the mix throughout the entire album. Why this is so often the case when such a brilliant bassist as Steve DiGiorgio is involved I'll never understand, but... shit... it keeps happening!? Anyway, beyond that, everything about this album kicks ass. I find Christy's drumming to occasionally show a little more restraint than usual, the guitar work is loaded with a diverse range of killer riffs and excellently fluid lead playing, Ripper sounds better than ever, and the songwriting's fuckin' great. With nine tracks in about 35 minutes it's a short but sweet, energetic and memorable metal album that really hits the spot for me in a way that I never would've expected. I simply had no idea this band had such an impressive lineup, nor that the results would indeed be so killer. I seriously can't recommend this disc enough, and have been listening to it fairly often in the last few weeks. I believe the CD comes with a "making of" DVD, so I'll probably buy the physical CD even though I already have the mp3's. I dig it that much!
While I prefer to let the music do the talking these days, it seems like they're keeping a tight lid on songs from the album being available online, so I'm just gonna post a short clip to give you a taste of what's in store here:
Charred Walls of the Damned "Blood on Wood" (excerpt)
Apparently Charred Walls of the Damned even recorded a cover of Powermad's "Nice Dreams" for the Japanese version of the CD, and it's supposed to be available on iTunes, but I don't see it. I'll have to keep an eye out, though, 'cause that's my favorite Powermad song by far, so I've got to hear that shit!
Get It
Metal Blade Records (CD)
Amazon.com (CD)
Amazon.com (mp3)
iTunes (mp3)
Comments
This album rules to the bone. Ripper does really excellent work here all the way through. And all the songs are great. The bass is a little low in the mix, but I can hear enough to catch a buzz. All is well.
2.8.2010 | By Marcus Garvey
Is the whole album made with singing vocals (no grunting)? That would be my only complaint as I’m not big fan of “heavy metal” (have too much Iron Maiden when I was a kid…) . That aside… I was fucking excited as 12 years old girl when going on Justin’s Timberlake when I read that Jason Suecof in playing in this band (and ex Death drummer and DiGiorgio). I fucking love Capharnaum. Hope they will make something new, that would be killer!
2.8.2010 | By Carlos
Yeah, all singing. I love that, though! Ha, ha…
2.8.2010 | By Andrew Aversionline
I am digging this record, too. The band name is indeed terrible, though the story behind it is awesome (see latest issue of Decibel).
2.8.2010 | By Invisible Oranges
Not bad. I haven’t listened to any straight heavy metal in a long time, so this certainly hits the spot. I agree, the band name is awful, regardless of what story is behind it.
2.9.2010 | By paul
Now I have to hear more of this.
2.9.2010 | By Adrianoso
Abysmal artwork. I usually can’t fucking stand “Ripper” (or straight-up metal), but the guy sounds on fire here. There’s a sense of “urgency” in this clip, as opposed to the usual bullshit drama. Really fucking cool, never thought I’d dig this.
2.10.2010 | By Chris
Richard Christy is an awesome drummer and this some of the best new music I came across lately! 2 thumbs up!\m/
2.18.2010 | By Heavy Metal CD