Baroness - Blue Record

September 9, 2009

Reviewer: Matt

Blue Record is the well written and thoroughly enjoyable new album from Savannah, Georgia, band Baroness, whose debut album Red Album earned them deserved accolades.  Though markedly similar to Mastodon’s less aggressive moments and working within the limited structural and tonal vocabulary that is rock music, Baroness succeed at crafting dynamic, thoughtful songs that demand repeated listen.  Quality heavy rock music isn’t easy to come by in the age of Ozzfest and My Chemical Romance, but Baroness has strong songwriting chops and a keen melodic sensibility.

Blue Record is a considerable improvement over their debut, which was imaginative but frequently lacked focus.  This time out, Baroness trim down the excessively long and essentially directionless quiet instrumental passages that were that album’s weakness, and the result is a more immediate release that says what it has to say without getting lost along the way.

From its anthemic opening lines, Blue Record strength is its southern-tinged melodicism and its diverse delivery.  Triumphant melodies are conveyed in gritty swamp rock trudges and NWOBM-inspired gallops interspersed with moments of quiet contemplation.  And while sonically indebted to decades of psychedelic rock music and taking a fundamentally recombinant approach to composition, Baroness adeptly avoid rehashing or updating old maneuvers in favor of experimentation with dynamic rhythm and layered textures within identifiable rock motifs.  Blue Record is catchy in the manner of successful pop music - cycling among immediately familiar chord progressions and lead melodies - but manages to be immeasurably better than practically all contemporary rock music by transcending verse/chorus structure to a narrative form utilized by accomplished metal acts.  The songwriting always manages to be surprising, loaded with a multitude of riffs and stunning transitions between them, overshadowing the frequently uncomfortable familiarity.

A quick word about the vocals: they’re by far their weakest aspect.  Though rooted in gritty sludge a la Eyehategod, Baroness showcases far more emotion and dynamics than their influences, and they would do well to expand their vocal repertoire beyond shouting and half-singing.  Maybe they see it as a toehold onto Relapse Records’s roster and into an amorphous market for heavy progressive southern rock, but, while the vocals are occasionally dramatic and effective, Baroness would benefit greatly from a more commanding and melodic presence at the mic.

Underlying the flurry of riffage is a supremely accomplished and brilliantly understated rhythm section helmed by drummer Allen Blickle, who further dissuades the inevitable Mastodon comparisons with a tastefulness and intricacy of which Brann Dailor (who, for all his technical ability, is obnoxiously masturbatory behind the kit) could only dream.  Blickle delivers the album’s premier performance, not only with his precision and fluidity, but with his deft ability to complement and navigate the band without overwhelming them.

With Blue Record, Baroness has established itself among the best of Relapse’s ever-diversifying roster.  Listeners of predominantly heavier, more extreme metal will find little to please their aesthetic palate, but may be surprised at the quality of the songwriting and the staying power of these tunes.  Those with an appreciation for less aggressive, rock-oriented music would do well to pick up this solid, exciting release and may find it one of their most-listened-to albums of the year.

Release Date: October 13th, 2009
Label: Relapse Records

TRACK LISTING

1.  Bullhead’s Psalm
2.  The Sweetest Curse
3.  Jake Leg
4.  Steel That Sleeps the Eye
5.  Swollen and Halo
6.  Ogeechee Hymnal
7.  A Horse Called Golgotha
8.  O’er Hell and Hide
9.  War, Wisdom, and Rhyme
10.  Blackpowder Orchard
11.  The Gnashing
12.  Bullhead’s Lament

Total playing time:  44:25

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