3 Inches Of Blood

How do Vancouver, BC-based classic/thrash metal outfit 3 Inches Of Blood fare on their fourth overall effort and first for new home Century Media? And, more importantly, without ravenous screecher Jamie Hooper, who's been sidelined indefinitely due to throat issues? Surprisingly well, actually. While Hooper's pterodactyl shrieks are missed on this 11-track affair, fellow vocalist Cam Pipes, who's generally the greater focal point, fills up the spaces with ease and soaring grit. Musically, the album is classic 3IOB, rarely expanding upon their established modus operandi. The album is replete with aggressive yet methodical thrash doled out with hyperactive tempos and modestly technical riffs. Just when one is wondering if the band will vary their Judas Priest-meets-Testament attack they unsheathe one of the weirdest fucking twists imaginable in "Preacher's Daughter," an almost countrified twang tune melding the Southern rock of Nashville Pussy with the boogie of Clutch. Imagine that delivered with a Deep Purple-esque keyboard and Cam Pipes' falsetto. It's weird but it works, kind of the overall revelation one has with Here Waits Thy Doom, which should tide fans over until Hooper is able to return to the fold and offer yet another layer to the band's thunderous power.