One of today’s most respected Texas area metal acts, Grain consists of David Jarvis on vocals, Nick Stolz on guitar, Rick Nagler on drums and Henry “Hank” Jarvis on bass. The quartet self-proclaim to be pioneers of scrap metal, a variation of Pantera’s thrash-based power groove and other various sub-genres of heavy music, including yes… dare I say, Rap-metal. And this reviewer hates Rap-Metal about as much as one can hate any form of music without actually going out and maimiing the artists who create it. All this said, I will be the first to stand and defend Grain’s new album entitled “The Abyss”. It’s one of the more truly metal sounding albums put out this year.
Bucking immediately out the gate like a steer on crack, the opening track, ‘Direct Us To Texas,’ is a definite head banger and for most of its length sounds like something an early ‘hair metal’ Pantera would have released, complete with the studder-stop double bass drumming action ala Vin ‘The Brick Wall’ Paul and harmonic-crying, monster-chunk riffing of late great Dimebag Darrell. Even vocalist Jarvis gets Anselmo’s pissed off screams down to a tee at points, while still managing to sound unlike most of the other vocalists using the same technique in metal. ‘Bleed The Stone’ is much of the same but that’s okay cause I totally dig a band that can at least remain consistent to their approach and not try and do something completely different just for the sake of it. These guys clearly enjoy being a Pantera-replicant, much like their peers Throwdown.
Read The Complete Review Here:
http://www.metalunderground.com/reviews/details.cfm?releaseid=552
More Stories
ROCKET REVIEW: MICK MARS – “The Other Side Of Mars” (CD)
ROCKET REVIEW: NinémiA – “Weapons Of Math Destruction” (CD)
ROCKET REVIEW: METALLICA – “72 Seasons” (CD)