Bust out the 20-sided dice and H.P. Lovecraft books — The Sword has a new album out. "Warp Riders" has potential to be the metal album of 2010, thanks to inspired guitar performances, a gloriously over-the-top concept and retro artwork that recalls the best of '70s sci-fi.
The Sword features guitarists J. D. Cronise and Kyle Shutt, drummer Trivett Wingo and bassist Bryan Richie. They play a brand of heavy rock that traces its lineage straight back to the doomy grooves of Black Sabbath. On their third release, the Texan quartet whips up its predecessors' funereal tempos and slathers on a thick layer of swords-and-sorcerers mythology that would tantalize any "World of Warcraft" fanboy.
"Riders" is a concept album, but it's nothing like The Who's "Tommy" (1969) and Pink Floyd's "The Wall" (1979). Instead, the story sounds like something bandleader Cronise, George Lucas and the ghost of J.R.R. Tolkien conjured up one day over a plate of special brownies. The tale involves an archer who discovers a magical orb that tells him "of the properties of certain herbs/Growing wild all across this land" and then sends him on a quest to save the barren planet of Acheron from tidal locking. Oh yeah, and some witches, space pirates and a time traveler called "The Chronomancer" all get involved along the way.
Now, if all this seems a bit silly, fret not: The Sword has always been about putting heavy riffage first, and "Riders" is no exception. Cronise and Shutt have re-forged their axe work, laying down their most varied guitar sounds yet. Along with their standard deep-as-the-Marianas-Trench churn, the duo employ speedy, precision thrash on the instrumentals "Acheron/Unearthing the Orb" and simplified hard rock on "Tres Brujas" and the title track. The bluesy, stripped-down "Lawless Lands" even struts like ZZ Top.
Producer Matt Bayles also deserves recognition for expanding The Sword's sonic palate. He cleans up the persistent, headache-inducing cymbal ring that plagued "Age of Winters" (2006) and "Gods of the Earth" (2008) and locks in the guitar tracks like twin laser-guided missiles.
In addition, Bayles pushes Cronise's Ozzy-esque wail way up in the mix, a move that is sure to polarize the band's hardcore fans. Whether it's a bid for mainstream appeal or simply a stylistic change, the increased vocal presence works. Cronise actually sounds charismatic for once against the swaggering wall of riffs in tracks like "The Chronomancer I: Hubris." His confidence as frontman molds potentially awkward lines like "Scanned for weapons and transmitters/Sold at auction to the highest bidder" into album highlights.
With The Sword's instrumental and vocal improvement, "Warp Riders" pulls itself head and shoulders above "Age of Winters" and "Gods of the Earth". The little things matter most — from the Thin Lizzy-on-crack lead guitars and cowbell-clanging sleaze of "Night City" to the sinister introductory atmospherics of "Arrows in the Dark." Bayles even pulls in organs and synths to imbue several tracks with a psychedelic swirl.
For all of the album's swashbuckling grandeur, the underwhelming finale is the one corroded engine preventing "Warp Riders" from blasting off to planet perfection. Despite the epic description of "Two armadas arrayed before us/Preparing to unleash their might," "(The Night the Sky Cried) Tears of Fire" features lackluster riffs and hookless melodies, merely bringing to mind a squabble between a handful of scrappy TIE fighters.
When nine other hyper-charged tracks are jostling for the listener's attention, however, one dud is not that big of a deal. "Warp Riders" is the most fun metal release of the year, a boisterous soundtrack to late-night driving, frantic air guitar duels or any dungeon-crawling role playing game.
