September 4, 2010

Reviewer: Roswell47

It's easy to judge a book by its cover.  It's also easy to judge a band by its name.  Colonel Blast may be an odd name for a band, but this English group is anything but a joke. Sure the moniker may bring to mind the supreme douchebaggery of bands like Dr. Acula, but assuming Colonel Blast is one of "those bands" couldn't be more incorrect.  Obviously Colonel Blast has a sense of humor.  Besides their choice of name, they have a t-shirt design featuring a roughly drawn outstretched arm in the "black metal claw" pose with the exclamation "AAAAARG!" underneath.  But when it comes to their music, Colonel Blast means business.

Colonel Blast plays a form of death metal that feels new and fresh without ever feeling forced or different for the sake of being different.  While the band has a unique sound, it doesn't step so far outside of the invisible boundaries of death metal to alienate most fans.  In other words, they have found the sweet spot between originality and familiarity.  There is plenty of emotion to be found in death metal, but Colonel Blast's runs a little deeper.  This is not cold, calculated technicality or blood, guts and gore death metal.  However while Colonel Blast's music is emotional, there's no whiny sweep-hair screamo junk to be found here either.  Their music is simply cathartic.  The band achieves this through both its vocals and music.  A great deal of the emotion on Colonel Blast's debut release, For the Greater Good, is channeled through vocalist Matt Bolton.  He utilizes a variety of vocal styles throughout the album.  He uses anguished black metal screams and mid-range screechy growls that are like a Tomas Lindberg (At the Gates) / Jacob Bannon (Converge) hybrid.   There are also low growls that bring Incantation and Bill Steer's vocals in Carcass to mind.  I don't have a copy of the lyrics to For the Greater Good, so I'm not exactly sure what Bolton is singing about.  He could be reading the back of a cereal box for all I care.  The power and emotion in his voice come across with or without knowing the words.

But this isn't just Bolton's show.  The other musicians do more than their share to make For the Greater Good an amazing release.  Colonel Blast is a well-oiled machine with all of its parts running smoothly in unison.  There are tons of complex changes throughout the songs, yet they always flow well and feel natural.  The arrangements are complicated and interesting, but the band makes it all sound so easy that one may not even notice the complexity at first.  The songs manage to be brutal, blackened, melodic, progressive, complex, and catchy all at once.  Colonel Blast covers all the bases, and it works surprisingly well.  Ben Whitfield, who handles the guitars, uses melody-injected tremolo picking, chugging chords, dissonance, clean parts and some occasional technical flash to hold the listener's interest throughout the album.  The guitars and Mike Lovatt's bass interact like symbiotic organisms.  The two-part title track features some ripping guitar/bass scalar runs, however the guitar/bass interaction really shines during the more mellow clean guitar parts.  These parts slowly build tension until it is eventually released in a blast of screaming fury.  An example of this can be found in "Management Coat Competition" with its blend of clean guitars, textured feedback, and tasteful bass fills during the bridge.  There is also an awesome moody section that connects parts one and two of the title track.  This section's droning bass line, sustained feedback, and clean guitars sound like they were culled directly from Anathema's The Silent Enigma.  The various clean, moody parts help the songs flow up and down with emotion by contrasting with the heavier parts.  The drums are truly the backbone of Colonel Blast's sound and are the foundation that holds all of these elements together.  The drumming is all over the place with double bass, blasts, and stunning fills, yet drummer Ineal Sandhu also knows when to ease up and let the songs breathe by playing something straight-forward.  Whether Sandhu is playing something complicated or something more simple, he manages to hold everything together and keeps the band from flying apart into total chaos. 

Colonel Blast's For the Greater Good will most likely fly under the radar and not reach the audience it truly deserves.  That's a real shame because this is one of the best releases I have heard all year.  I hope a larger label re-releases this album, or that the band gets better distribution so that this album can find a larger audience.  Since the release of For the Greater Good, vocalist Matt Bolton has left Colonel Blast and moved to the United States.  Here's hoping the band soldiers on and releases another album that's equally strong.  Meanwhile, I think I'm going to go give For the Greater Good another spin.

Release Date: June 7, 2010
Label: Condate Records

TRACK LISTING

1.  Ethical Betrayal
2.  Management Coat Competition
3.  Savour The Flavour
4.  For The Greater Good Pt. I
5.  For The Greater Good Pt. II
6.  The Beacon
7.  Frozen In Apathy
8.  Blofeld Never Died

Total playing time:  30:43

*By clicking "Submit" you agree to the following Terms of Use. You agree not to post any material that is obscene, slanderous, or threatening, or that may violate any law of your country of origin or the United States or of international law. Should you wish to restrict viewing of your email address by third parties, you must select "Hide My Email." You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Metal Psalter from any claims, actions, suits, damages, or other costs arising out of any breach of these Terms of Use.

*Comments:

Colonel Blast - For the Greater Good

TO THE TOP