IN THE ARMS OF GOD
Can you imagine if Pepper Keenan had joined METALLICA? I was just watching the DVD version of
Some Kind Of Monster the other day, and I was watching the bass player audition segment. Every time Pepper Keenan's face pops up, I can't help but wonder what the mighty Metallica would have sounded like if the CORROSION OF CONFORMITY main man joined them. After hearing "Paranoid Opioid", I think the combination would have been sonically devastating...you know, the good kind of devastating that makes you thrash about like a silly kid.
The opening to
In The Arms Of God threw me at first, because the disc opens up with a very generic blues jam....but at about 1:13, it kicks into a trademark COC crunch riff. Then Keenan's voice hits, and you know you have a COC disc (well, not that you'd really debate that fact...and if you did doubt it, you probably have some issues that need dealing with ).
I've always been a casual fan of COC, but I know when they deliver some good songs. For example, when "Dirty Hands Empty Pockets/Already Gone" kicks into gear, you can tell how well this track will translate live...that is, if they choose to play it while they're on the road with MOTÖRHEAD. Amazing groove with this song; another one of those tunes you wish Keenan would have brought into the Metallica camp had he joined.
I don't know whose voice is singing on "Infinite War", but it's certainly not Keenan (I only have a promo copy; the disc is released on April 5th)... I love the song though. Fucking thunderous.
I like that they included the mellow "Rise River Rise", becuase it shows off the band's diversity...but in all honesty, I have never been a huge fan of the psychadelic stoner rock thing... Odd coming from a guy who is praising a COC disc, I know. I like that the band can go from melting your face off to holding a melodic, somber vibe throughout an entire song though.
I don't know if I'm qualified to dictate whether
In The Arms Of God is better than past COC releases, but I do know that it is unmistakably...and unquestionably...Corrosion of Conformity. Consistency is always a good thing, you know?
