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Oct 01, 2024 Web Exclusive By Frank Valish

It’s easy to make cookie cutter heavy metal. It’s much harder to distinguish oneself. There are certain things that are necessary. A killer voice. Riffs that pack a punch yet don’t simply regurgitate the same old hackneyed variations on a theme. A smattering of devil referencing doesn’t hurt, with lyrics that echo just the right amount of occultish glee, walking a line that borders on the absurd, enough to be perhaps moderately scary and also vaguely humorous without completely jumping the shark into the hilariously asinine. Enough showmanship to risk silliness for the almighty god of rock and roll while taking yourself just seriously enough to risk ridicule but not so seriously that you beg for it.

For the last 10 years, and from the unlikeliest of places, Pottsville, PA, Crobot has walked that line masterfully. The band’s previous four albums are a leather cornucopia of all things the best metal evokes, and the band’s latest, Obsidian, is the icing on the jet black chocolate cake.

Opening with the title track, singer Brandon Yeagley howls lyrics about darkness, doom, shadows, and, for some reason “never ever doubting obsidian,” over guitarist Chris Bishop’s blinding riffs. It’s prime Crobot—fast, furious, propulsive, epic. “Nothing” alternates between vocal histrionics and a staggering riff that begs the volume to be cranked to 11, before everything drops out and Yeagley exalts that, “We all bleed so we can feel alive, and wonder why we all feel nothing,” a heavy metal devil’s bargain if there ever was one. “Disappear” boasts an absolutely thundering guitar riff that syncs up with the bass to nearly blow out your speakers. And “Metal” states the obvious (“I am metal”) like a Lemmy Kilmister-led runaway train, with blistering guitar solo to boot.

Elsewhere, “The Flood” is preceded by a brief metal poetry interlude, which sounds pretty much exactly as you would expect from such description. “Ancient Druid Crown,” “Head of the Beast,” and “White Rabbit” come precariously close to parody, at least in title and lyrics, although be sure that the heavy metal rock is never in doubt. And as if to completely buck any stereotype you’d be willing to cast throughout the album’s previous 11 tracks, Obsidian ends with a song titled “Happiness,” a power ballad of sorts.

As an aside, the best metal also necessarily features a killer live show, and if Crobot ever tips over the line into the absurdist that it teeters in its records, it does not do so live. Yeagley is one of the best heavy metal singers this side of the late Chris Cornell, and Bishop sounds as devastating live as he does on record. The new rhythm section that anchors Obsidian will join the band on tour to support the album. Be sure to check out the full metal experience, coming to a town somewhere near you. And long live rock! (www.crobotband.com)

Author rating: 7.5/10