Lamb of God

There's a good amount of hype surrounding these lads right now, and it's all well-deserved - New American Gospel is one of the heaviest, most honest and brutal metal CDs out there right now. The band used to be known as Burn the Priest, and for those that heard their excellent self-titled CD in 1999, you won't be disappointed with this Metal Blade debut. These guys take a very groove-heavy sound and mix it up with some technical virtuoso that's pretty head turning. Think Pantera meets Meshuggah meets the hardcore underground and you're getting close. The drummer is impressive, with some awesome double-bass patterns and a truly killer snare drum sound. The production sound is "heavy" and comes care of the scariest fucker around, Steve Austin of Today Is the Day. The lyrics are as intense as the music, as this quote from anti-hard drug song "Pariah" shows: "I want to punch in your sunken face and see your dusty blood smear through the air in a polluted crimson arc, splattering in a useless pattern on the concrete." New American Gospel is a thoroughly satisfying listen and an innovative, real, heavy and scary metal album.