By Andrew Bansal
Based out of Little Rock, Arkansas, doom metal quartet Pallbearer garnered widespread acclaim and recognition amongst fans and critics in the genre for their incredible 2012 debut full-length ‘Sorrow And Extinction’. Now, their much anticipated follow-up effort is releasing via Profound Lore Records, and while the debut was an unadulterated portrayal of the expression that is doom metal, this new album, recorded under the supervision of the legendary Billy Anderson, builds upon the foundation of its predecessor and ends up giving rise to a colossal sonic monument.
The guitar harmonies that decorated the debut album so beautifully are still very much in prominence, but come across much more dynamically as the clean guitar parts are aided by the usage of analog synthesizer/piano on three of the six tracks and sound more melodic while the distorted riffing has a dirtier, grittier edge to it, most certainly a result of Billy Anderson’s input. His mastery of producing stoner/doom albums has enabled us to enjoy a greatly expressive version of the Pallbearer sound, high on monstrosity and dark melody in equal measure. The rhythm section adds further punch to the dirge of the heavy guitars, and Brett Campbell’s vocals have been used to great effect as they do not hinder the instrumentation but rather revolve around it in optimum amounts.
The first two tracks ‘Worlds Apart’ and ‘Foundations’ set the tone in an ideal manner and on the third track ‘Watcher In The Dark’ is where this Pallbearer album delves deep into its grimmest sonic textures, the tempo slowing down to not only let these four musicians breathe in their respective instruments, but to also allow the listener to absorb every single note to the fullest. Drawing from this epic tune, ‘The Ghost I Used To Be’ takes the album to its peak with tremendous delivery of vocals, distorted guitars and somber passages. The piano-driven ‘Ashes’ comes next and serves almost as an interlude, while the closing 12-minute piece ‘Vanished’ goes into full-on unabated doom territory with a very, very gradual buildup before it winds down to bring the album to a fitting end.
With ‘Foundations Of Burden’, Pallbearer have taken their musical creativity to greater heights and have succeeded in painting richer, darker and more elaborate soundscapes that combine to create an even greater depiction and representation of doom than their debut effort.
Rating: 9.5/10
Record Label: Profound Lore
Release Date: August 19th 2014
Track Listing:
01. Worlds Apart
02. Foundations
03. Watcher In The Dark
04. The Ghost I Used To Be
05. Ashes
06. Vanished
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Pallbearer North American tour dates with Tombs and Vattnet Viskar:
October 17 Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
October 18 Lexington, KY @ Cosmic Charlie’s
October 19 Champaign, IL @ High Dive
October 20 Madison, WI @ The Frequency
October 21 Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick
October 23 Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
October 24 Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace
October 25 Montreal, QC @ Il Motore
October 26 Boston, MA @ Great Scott
October 27 Brooklyn, NY @ Saint Vitus
October 29 Philadelphia, PA @ Black Box
October 30 Baltimore, MD @ Metro Gallery
October 31 Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506
November 1 Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
November 2 Tampa, FL @ The Orpheum
November 5 Houston, TX @ Fitzgerald’s Downstairs
November 7 Austin, TX @ Fun Fun Fun Fest
November 9 Dallas, TX @ Three Link