It is unusual for a band that has been around as Lamb of God to release a self-titled album, but it is possible this is for a few different reasons. The last release by the band was not actually the previous Lamb of God release but an album of covers they released as Burn The Priest, which was the original name of the band when they were first formed and under which they released their debut album. More importantly, this is the first ever release which does not feature drummer Chris Adler, who alongside bassist John Campbell were the only founders of Burn The Priest still involved. Adler had taken some time away from Lamb of God to perform and record with Megadeth (winning a Grammy for his work on ‘Dystopia’) and is now working with neither. There are various reasons floating around the web as to why he left, but for whatever reason he is no longer involved, and his place has been taken by Art Cruz (Winds of Plague, Cruz).

It may have been five years since the last LoG release, but in many ways, this is a direct continuation and sonically there is not much difference in the drum styles. The band feel happier with the album itself due to a change in approach in that they undertook pre-production then toured with Slayer before coming back to the songs which allowed them to hear them in a different light. Hard-hitting groove metal is the order of the way, with Randy Blythe bringing his best punk attack to it over the top. His vocal approach does provide cut through, as the band provide a solid backdrop for him to spit his venom against. As with the last album this is also highly melodic, although the nuances do not appear to be as prevalent, which may be due to having a new drummer as opposed to having one who has been in the band for quarter of a century. This is solid as opposed to exceptional, and it will be interesting to see what happens with the next one. I just hope we don’t have to wait another five years as I do not think it is possible for these guys to release a bad album, and I am intrigued to see where they go from here.

Rating: 7/10

Links:
https://www.lamb-of-god.com/
https://www.nuclearblast.de/en/