The Gates of Slumber – Wretch (2011)

The tone is set to heavy with Gates of Slumber’s latest album; the riffs crawl along at a sludge-like tempo with an eeriness weaving in and out of the pattern. Moving away from their usual theme of swords and sorcery and into the real world was a wise choice for their part as well the pick for new drummer, J “Cool” Clyde” Paradis. His drumming has a vibe to it that sounds like it made even vocalist Karl Simon and bassist Jason McCash step up their game a bit.

On “Bastards Born”, the spirit of Black Sabbath takes over Simon and the rest of the band as he delivers his vocals with confidence and grittiness that rides along with echoing guitar. “The Scourge of Drunkenness” picks up to a galloping pace with a traditional metal rhythm. “Day of Farewell” is a somber track with some very introspective lyrics supplied by Simon and shows off a phenomenal guitar solo as well. The bass is also brought more to the forefront that supplies a darker rhythm and feel to it. “Castle of the Devil” is haunting as Karl delivers his vocals with power as the drums and bass bring in a funky groove to it towards the middle. “Coven of Cain” is probably one of the most up-tempo songs on here with some great harmonies strong guitar rhythm.

There is nothing truly ground-breaking here but there is no doubt that Gates of Slumber is one of the more talented bands within this genre and delivers “Wretch” with confidence and skill. Fans of doom or stoner metal will definitely want to give this a listen!

Review by: themetalwahine

Release: May 10th, 2011

Country: USA