Ok so it’s been awhile since I’ve done a new review but fo this one I wanted to review a band that was known for being a riff heavy band. The band up on the chopping block is the band Crowbar. There’s a reason why Kirk Windstein is called The Riff Lord right? Anyway, I don’t know much about them and probably have only heard a few songs from them but I’ve already reviewed Down so why not Crowbar. Here we go………
Obedience Through Suffering- so here we can clearly tell vocally that this is an early album of there’s. Kirk’s vocals aren’t as I guess deep on here and they sound like a new band. One thing I will say is that after awhile, the album does start to sound the same. Musically, it’s got kind of a Sabbath vibe to it. A pretty solid debut album and I give it 8/10
Standouts: Vaccum, Feeding Fear, A Breed Apart
Crowbar- believe it or not, back in the day, MTV actually played music videos and after hearing this album, I remember seeing the videos for the songs All I Had (I Gave) and Existence Is Punishment on Beavis and Butthead. I feel like on this album, they established themselves and Kirk’s vocals are deeper sounding and the riffs also standout here. Beavis and Butthead said that the music is fat and slow and it’s exactly that. One cool thing about this is that the album was produced by Phil Anselmo. A good album which gets an 8/10
Standouts: Negative Pollution, Will That Never Dies, Self Inflicted
Time Heals Nothing- this one has some groove to it. Vocally, Kirk is at his best here and the guitar work is excellent here as well. It’s a slow and grinding album and I would say that if you are looking for a good sludge metal record then this is a good starting point. I can see why this one would be considered a classic. It gets a 9.5/10
Standouts: The Only Factor, Still I Reach, A Perpetual Need
Broken Glass- again continuing with the same sort of format here, this album has some groove to it and the riffs are really good here. I’m a big fan of the guitar work on this record except my only real complaint would be that for some of the catchier riffs, I feel like they are a little short. I also would’ve liked to hear some sort of guitar solo as well. Phil Anselmo also provides additional vocals on this record and that’s really cool. Overall, not too bad. I give it 9/10
Standouts: Like Broken Glass, Burn Your World, Above Below and In Between
Odd Fellows Rest- this one is slower compared to the other albums. It’s even got some doom metal elements to it as well. I remember when I was in line waiting to see them at the Metal Alliance show, I asked some people who were there for Crowbar what’s a good album to start and they said this one. Listening to it it’s easy to see why. Like this is considered classic sludge metal (I hate that term btw). The riffs are slow , crushing , and chunky and Sammy Duet (from Goatwhore) plays lead guitar on this album as well. I give this one 10/10
Standouts: ……and Suffer as One, New Man Born, On Frozen Ground
Equilibrium- this one seems to be just a little bit faster than the last album. I kinda got tired of listening to this one and while not as good as the previous one, it’s worth checking out. There is a pretty neat cover of Dreamweaver on here as well as a cover of In A Gadda Da Vida. I give this one 7/10
Standouts: Glass Full Of Liquid Pain, To Touch The Hand Of God, Command Of Myself
Sonic Excess In It’s Purest Form- here things are sped up and there are some songs on here which do remind me of what they used to do back for the first couple albums which was sludge metal mixed with some hardcore. Overall, this one has songs that are kind of hit and miss. I give this 8/10
Standouts: Awakening, Failure to Delay Gratification, In Times Of Sorrow
Lifesblood For The Downtrodden- things have been turned up a notch here. The groove that they had is back and I’d say after a couple of albums that were a little on the slower sounding side, this one is mid tempo. I think I actually remember seeing this one advertised in like Revolver or Metal Hammer back in 2005. A cool thing about this album is that Rex Brown plays bass on this album. A very good album and I give it 9.5/10
Standouts: Angels Wings, Fall Back To Zero, The Violent Reaction
Sever The Wicked Hand- now this is the Crowbar album I’ve been waiting for. It’s got some of their fastest songs yet and they are great. Yes it does have those slower crushing songs but some of the stuff on here is sped up. I remover hearing Kirk talking about this album on Full Metal Jackie’s podcast and they played one or two songs off of this album. This one definitely gets a 10/10
Standouts: Sever The Wicked Hand, Let Me Mourn, I Only Deal In Truth
Symmetry In Black- so this one I wouldn’t say is a bad album by any means but it just doesn’t offer anything new or ground breaking. Yes it is very much a Crowbar album and it’s fine for a Crowbar album. Slow sludge riffs and Kirk’s vocals compliment each other rather well. I give this one 7/10
Standouts: The Taste Of Dying, Shaman Of Belief, Symbolic Suicide
The Serpent Only Lies- I feel Kirk went back and listened to the first couple albums and decided to draw inspiration from that. Like if you take maybe the first three albums and mix them together this is what you get. It’s got a little bit of something for everyone. Personally, I prefer an album like Sever but this one is good too. I give it 8/10
Standouts: The Enemy Beside You, I Am The Storm, Embrace the Light
Well that was my look into Crowbar and I must say that they’re definitely up there with bands like Down. I can see why they call Kirk Windstein the riff lord because the riffs on these albums are heavy and catchy. The one time I saw them at the Meta Alliance they were one of the better bands and the fans of this band really love this band. I think I was the only one who caught Kirk’s guitar pick and people were all like “ah man no fair.” I think a great tour would be if Down and Crowbar were on the same bill.
Final Grade: B
Album Rankings:
- Sever The Wicked Hand
- Odd Fellows Rest
- Lifesblood For The Downtrodden
- Time Heals Nothing
- Broken Glass
- Obedience Through Suffering
- Crowbar
- Sonic Excess In It’s Purest Form
- Symmetry In Black
- Equilibrium
- The Serpent Only Lies
Sinister Reviews 