IN REVIEW: Gallows - "Desolation Sounds"

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After a pair of high intensity records fronted by British madman Frank Carter and the tentative reboot featuring ex-Alexisonfire member Wade McNeil, Desolation Sounds' lead singles (Chains and Bonfire Season) had many fans fearing Gallows had committed the cardinal sin of going rock on album four. Truth be told, the two relatively straight forward rock songs both are and aren't indicators of what to expect from the album; there's plenty of intensity-fueled punk bombast to be had in addition to other forays into decidedly non-punk territory. Mystic Death and Swan Song bookend the album with caustic familiarity, playing like songs that could have been taken from Grey Britain if not for the lack of Frank Carter's thick accent (and the guitar playing of his brother Steph, who left the band after the self titled 2012 record). Elsewhere, brutally heavy and intense tracks Leviathan Rot, Leather Crown and 93/93 rank as some of the overall meanest tracks the band has presented to date.

The album also houses some of the band's most accessible material, though; further to the two singles, the title track and Death Valley Blue are psychedelic death trips that recall Queens of the Stone Age of all bands (albeit QotSA in a particularly foul mood). The biggest departure is Cease to Exist; it's a brooding and harrowing ballad that, while not exactly lighters-in-the-air material, is by far the closest Gallows is ever likely to come to a radio ready song.

Gallows are clearly unafraid to introduce new elements to their sound, just as they're clearly unaffected by cries of "sellouts" and "I miss Frank". If I have a bone to pick, it's that Desolation Sounds plays like an album of two minds, one foot in the mosh pit and the other in the cheap seats. I'm personally fine with both styles, even though it renders the album a bit uneven, but I fear Desolation Sounds is destined to alienate a majority who will only like half of the record.

April 14, 2015 • Venn/Universal
Highlights Mystic Death • Bonfire Season • Death Valley Blue

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