Orange Goblin-A eulogy for the damned

Candlelight
2012

This year is certainly starting off on the right foot with the return of Orange Goblin. Certainly one of my most anticipated albums for 2012. The huge five disc boxed set from Metal Blade last year with all the bonus tracks had me slobbering for new material even more. I wasn't sure what to expect from them at this point in their career. Well what they bring this time around is an album that is slightly stripped down and there is definitely a great focus on simply churning out some real groove-charged tunes. There is a definitely a hungrier mood in a number of songs here including the opener "Red Tide Rising" which sets the tone for much of the album with a controlled attack. "The Fog" shows the band still has a knack for creating massive glides that can dominate an entire track even with basic rhythms. Don't for a minute think this band has mellowed with age because they can still stomp you flat as you can plainly hear on tracks like "Death of Aquarius" hits like jackhammer to the head. Of course Orange Goblin can still knock out songs like "Bishop's wolf" which falls back on the slick groove driven rock that this band has always excelled at. If anything this band has become slightly more flexible this time around. Not that they stray too far from their past, but they push the limits a little more and sound very comfortable with every track the offer up on "A Eulogy for the damned". I didn't have expectations as much as I did just hopes that this album would be solid and if anything it's better than I hoped. These guys have generally been very consistent over the years and this is album is no exception.