Warlord

Item: Rock the Foe Hammer
Author: David Bixler

Rock the Foe Hammer

(1999)

Reviewed by David Bixler

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Label Solid State RecordsHM Magazine #79September 1999

doom metal hardcore hardcore punk metalcore

It has finally happened. After much talk of a full length follow-up to Warlord's EP, Rock the Foe Hammer is born. I will start off by saying that I really do not know how to go about describing this CD. It is quite different from anything I have heard before. A lot of the songs are quite epic, with long, drawn-out sections of music, and a lot of the music has a slow yet heavy feel to it. Perhaps doomcore is a good word to use, as the hardcore influence is evident, but the primary musical feel is that of doom. In fact, at times I almost feel like I could be listening to Last Chapter if they came from a hardcore background rather than a metal background, as many of the songs contain strange-sounding samples before launching into long segues of pounding riffage. Unfortunately, a lot of this riffing is extremely repetitive, and I would almost think that the band members would get bored playing the same chugga-chugga for a minute straight. I do like this CD musically though. The thing I don't like about this CD is the vocals. It sounds to me like the vocals are being run through an overdrive pedal, and it begins to wear on the ears after a few songs. Basically, the vocals remind me of what I think Mark Saloman would sound like if he processed his voice, which could possibly be a good thing, except that his voice sounds great without any processing. Same thing applies here, as I think I would like his vocals without any sort of processing whatsoever. There are a few select spots on the CD where it isn't used, and I really like his vocals in those spots. Lyrically, Warlord is pretty upfront about what they believe, and their choice in words is fitting to the style of music they play ("They shall see my servant beaten, and bloodied / so disfigured, you would scarcely know it was / a human standing there," from "To Die For," which describes the story of Jesus). Overall, they blend together a sound that is fairly unique. If they could just eliminate the vocal problem, this CD would be one of the best I have heard in a while, as it otherwise is a terrific CD.