Craven Idol – The Shackles Of Mammon
London’s Craven Idol releases their hotly anticipated second full length “The Shackles Of Mammon”.
Comparisons to Destroyer 666 and Bathory are floating around the release which I think is pretty positive, I think it’s a starting reference more than anything else. It does mix thrash with elements of black metal and it has that dirty raw feel of the early days while making good use of haunting melodies. Dare I say it I think there’s a bit of NWOBHM influence in there too.
Kicking off with a banshee howl, the short, sharp opening track 'Pyromancer' pulls you in slaps you around with frantic shredding, tortured vocals before going into 'A Ripping Strike' which I feel is where the album really begins and the different shades of the band’s sound really starts to unfold. It has a nice introduction and the song builds up as goes along. It captures that perfect balance of being so chaotic that the band could derail any second while maintaining an atmosphere and keeping a sense of structure as much as a contradiction that is! 'The Trudge' is the albums signature song and where the Bathory comparisons come from. The song gallops with an anthemic melody is chanted along going over a sinister guitar melody. You can just see a massive crowd singing along. It could easily come from Bathory’s classic middle three albums. It’s metal through and through.
For the rest of the album the band really go over familiar territory while exploring a doomier side on the closing track. All in all though, this is a highly enjoyable album. They don’t quite shake off the bands they are compared too in terms of originality but hopefully the band will develop more of a unique sound with time and they more than make up for it with their passion and execution. This is a great collection of songs and a great slice of dark, grim yet glorious blackened thrash!
Comparisons to Destroyer 666 and Bathory are floating around the release which I think is pretty positive, I think it’s a starting reference more than anything else. It does mix thrash with elements of black metal and it has that dirty raw feel of the early days while making good use of haunting melodies. Dare I say it I think there’s a bit of NWOBHM influence in there too.
Kicking off with a banshee howl, the short, sharp opening track 'Pyromancer' pulls you in slaps you around with frantic shredding, tortured vocals before going into 'A Ripping Strike' which I feel is where the album really begins and the different shades of the band’s sound really starts to unfold. It has a nice introduction and the song builds up as goes along. It captures that perfect balance of being so chaotic that the band could derail any second while maintaining an atmosphere and keeping a sense of structure as much as a contradiction that is! 'The Trudge' is the albums signature song and where the Bathory comparisons come from. The song gallops with an anthemic melody is chanted along going over a sinister guitar melody. You can just see a massive crowd singing along. It could easily come from Bathory’s classic middle three albums. It’s metal through and through.
For the rest of the album the band really go over familiar territory while exploring a doomier side on the closing track. All in all though, this is a highly enjoyable album. They don’t quite shake off the bands they are compared too in terms of originality but hopefully the band will develop more of a unique sound with time and they more than make up for it with their passion and execution. This is a great collection of songs and a great slice of dark, grim yet glorious blackened thrash!
- Pyromancer
- A Ripping Strike
- Black Flame Divination
- The Trudge
- Dashed To Death
- Mammon Est
- Hunger
- Tottering Cities Of Men
