A feast of sludge
I have a soft spot for Doom! The slow grinding riffs and pounding rhythms are, for me, what metal is all about. I don't think there's any other type of musical genre in the world that can create bands who play such slow dirge funeral like music. (Except perhaps Travis) Personally I'd love to see James Blunt write and perform a fifteen-minute sludge-a-thon, but then again that's just me. The Abominable Iron Sloth aren't Doom in the conventional sense, they're not going to be bedfellows with the likes of Reverend Bizarre or Electric Wizard. Whether it was intentional or not, the band have created a glorious mix of Doom metal and metal core, and quite frankly has had me hooked.
The band is the brainchild of Justin Godfrey and Will Haven's Cayle Hunter, and as much as I wanted to hate this band because of their ridiculous name, I found I couldn't. In the end I just called the band 'Sloth', which is better for everyone I think. The word 'Sloth' is very apt for this musical adventure, the songs rarely get about hundred beats per minute, the guitars are tuned to drop double G and the riffage is slow, precise and menacing. Every track as you'd expect is bottom end heavy with a muddy production to perfectly compliment this low-end chuggery. In short, The Abominable Iron Sloth is like being bludgeoned with a musical sledgehammer.
Vocally speaking, this is just a metal core shout-around. The vocals are devoid of any kind of melody, discernable hook and audible lyrics, relying on the sheer brutality of the riffs to win the day. Not a bad decision in retrospect as songs such as 'The family that slays together stays together,' and opener 'Hats made of veal and that new car scent,' contain some savage guitar work. There's nothing in the way of solos or harmonies, just hard hitting musical slurry. This is metal that has been weighed down through years of gathered silt.
Perhaps with a dash of extra melody The Abominable Iron Sloth may have a more universal appeal. As it stands they'll just stay within the underground echelons, which is perhaps fitting for such a behemoth. At only twenty-seven minutes there's not a lot on offer for your money, but the flip side of the coin is that it doesn't get monotonous. (Or at least it will take a while) I think in the long run I'll stick with the Cathedrals and Reverend Bizarres of this world, but 'The Sloth' has some great tracks and some intimidating guitar riffs. It's doom for the metal-core kids who's attention span lasts only three-minutes and too be honest, I can't see a problem with that. I dare James Blunt to write something like this, go on son, I dare you.