Album Review: "Black Crusades" by Tombstalker

Black Crusades

As someone who's been into music for a very long time, the idea that there are places which create musical scenes is an idea I have long been able to get behind.

Who reading this isn't familiar with Tampa Bay Death Metal? Bay Area Thrash? Swedish Death Metal? New York Glam?

London Punk? Seattle Grunge?

Long has it been said, on these pages and probably elsewhere, that the biggest influence a band will have is its hometown. Black Sabbath played angry, but downtrodden music.

Metallica's sound came from trying to blow away LA Glam Metal. Today we consider another band from Kentucky, Tombstalkers. Frankly, Kentucky is one of those states that just seems so alien to me. Aside from Louisville, no cities stick out in my mind.

What does Kentucky sound like?

Tombstalker

Here we go again, it's more black metal right?

Black Metal is an acquired taste that as everyone knows, still has yet to be acquired.

Well Tombstalker is hardly your everyday Finnish Black Metal band, and that's largely as we discussed before, they hail from Kentucky, but no one seems to know where at precisely.

They have that Gothenburg tone to their music. The songs are brittle and airy.

There is beauty in songs that aren't overproduced and made barebones, and Black Crusades oozes that kind of sound and feel.

The growls sound far away with a natural echo surrounding them that can probably never be duplicated by anyone again, kind of like Slash Tone.

Basslines are full and jumpy. The guitars feature strangely floppy solos, but somehow nothing else could fit into their place.

Black Crusade is a heavy, angry, piece of art. In their debut, Tombstalker has learned the most important rule of thumb well: Play to the song.

Release: 6/3/16
Genre: Black Metal
Label: Shadow Kingdom
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