(NUCLEAR BLAST RECORDS; 2014)
The members of Anti-Mortem are, on average, 21 years old. That’s really nothing special… rock and roll has always been a young man’s (or woman’s) game, even though some of those youngsters have grown up and continued to excel at their chosen craft. What is special is that, on their debut release, these five Oklahomans have the sound and the chops of a much more experienced band. We can, perhaps, give a nod to veteran producer Bob Marlette for the sound but, the music and lyrics are all Anti-Mortem. And, even though there is a certain cohesiveness to the record, these guys wear their influences like a badge of honor: Classic 1970s hard rock, late 1990s new American metal, Southern Rock and dirty Blues all have played a part in making this band what they are. “Words of Wisdom” kick-starts the album with some nu-metal downtuning and a Classic Rock vibe. Toss in liberal doses of snotty Alice Cooper style vocals and a touch of Molly Hatchet Southern Rock arrogance and that, my friends, is what Anti-Mortem is all about. The title track cements the sound. It has a chugging Rob Zombie-like Southern stomp with a swampy Zakk Wylde kind of guitar thing happening. The chorus, “New Southern, I live this way/Going straight to Hell on a rainy day/New Southern, cuz I live this way,” is the basic theme of the album and credo for the band. “100% Pure American Rage” sounds like it coulda been an outtake from Alice’s BRUTAL PLANET album… about a bunch of kids saying “enough is enough.” There’s a line that goes something like, “This devil’s going to make you pay,” which sounds like a warning shot to those who seek to do us harm, all in the name of their “God.” But, the message is actually a quite different and very simple one, as highlighted in the video for the tune: “Choose your weapon!” The next song, “Hate Automatic” offers a similar sentiment, this time directed at a more homegrown kind of terrorist: The bullys, the kids that bring assault rifles to the playground and the classroom.
Hitting like a more intense Shinedown, “Black Heartbeat” is a vicious break-up song with a definite Southern groove dominated by Levi Dickerson’s solid drumming. “I Get Along With the Devil” is a rampaging, Metallica-on-steroids groover, highlighted by some awesome guitar work throughout, provided by Zain Smith and Nevada Romo. A Black Label Society kind of slow-cooker, “Path To Pain” features another onslaught of grinding, stinging guitars and what may just be Larado Romo’s best vocal performance. “Wake Up” is more of a mid-’70s hard rock thing, filtered through the grunge of Alice In Chains and the swamp boogie of Black Label Society’s early stuff.
“Ride of Your Life” has a horror feel… musically, it falls somewhere between Rob Zombie and the Michale Graves era Misfits. The tune features one of the more memorable riffs I’ve heard in a while and a really cool breakdown leading into a buzz saw of a guitar solo. I’m not exactly sure how to read “Stagnant Water.” It’s either about a murder or a suicide, revenge or blessed relief. The over-all lyrical message is, “Everybody has demons to face and a breaking point that sends them over the edge.” It definitely has some of the best imagery on the album. A “life on the road,” hookers ‘n’ musicians in heat song, “Truck Stop Special” kinda reminds me of SCREAM DREAM era Uncle Ted. The guitar even has that sweet tone that Ted is known for, especially on the solo. Finally, everything that you love about ’70s Southern Rock and late-’90s alternative and metal music is encompassed in one killer four-minute-and-fifteen-second track called “Jonesboro.” It is the perfect closer to a very strong debut album. (There’s also a bonus cover of Mister Big’s “A Little Too Loose,” which I haven’t heard… I’m not real sure which version it’s on.) I’m expecting great things from this group in the future. I’ve said this many times before and it bears repeating here: “Go ye forth, mine brethren (and sisterns?) and consume!”