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Corrosion Of Conformity: Blind

28/01/10 || InquisitorGeneralis

From the first moment I heard “Dance of the dead” I was sold on “Blind” and I have been waiting (in vain) for CoC to top it ever since. “Blind” is catchy, thrashy, punky southern friend metal goodness and I fucken love it more than your Uncle Zeke loves your cousin, aunt, sister Buelah!

“Blind” stands out for many reasons: primarily because it is the final (and only) vocal performance of Karl Agell. Secondly, it has a spend and energy not to be found again in the CoC lexicon. This is not to say I dislike the slower feel of later, and damn good albums like Deliverance that fellow staffer Trauma beats off to when he has sipped too much of that sweet southern sizzurp. Ace review though there Traumanater, I shall try to do CoCK justice as well.

“These shrouded temples” is a great instrumental intro and should have been on this here Top 10 List. But I digress, after the solid intro track “Damned for all time” comes in and lays down the groove that runs throughout the entire album. “Dance of the dead” keeps the quality rolling and is another great track. Why this is left out of current CoC set-lists I will never know, Pepper could sing it because, let’s face it, bitches want to hear it!

“Break the circle” kicks the ass and is my favorite track on here: great lyrics, awesome groove, and a killer breakdown make it standout. “Buried” is a close second that slows things down and bit with some serious molassatussin groove. The first five tracks on here just dominate.

Things slack off a bit after that though, and the second half of “Blind” lacks some pop except for “Vote with a bullet”…the only song you will probably ever here CoC play from here. Don’t get me wrong, I love “Violate with a penis” and touch myself accordingly every time I have heard Peppers of Conformity play it live. The band definitely lost focus though on the backside of “Blind” and this is the main reason for it being denied entry into the hallowed halls of the Class6(66).

Production and performance are both damn good on “Blind” with the guitars certainly being the driving force. The drumming by Reed Mullin is good, but you know me I’d love some doublebass thrown in from time to time. Still, a solid performance that fits the style of the album perfectly. A Derek Roddy or George Kolias just would not fit on here, regardless of technical skill or flying feet. Pepper and Woody lay down one killer riff after another and I challenge you to find a CoC album with better axemanship. Karl Agell’s vocals are a perfect mix of sing and snarl and the lyrics are pretty fucken cool too.

“Blind” is a great record for metalheads of all genres. It has serious Southern groove plus some anger and aggression. Will this make you want to burn a church or eat someone’s brains? Probably not. But, it will make you want to smoke pot and be pissed at the government for the lies it has been feeding you since day one. This is the Corrossion of Conformity album to own and, while the band has certainly put out some excellent albums since, has never been topped. Besides a little drop in quality in it’s second half “Blind” has few flaws and that ain’t no jive talkin’ jack.

Book ‘em danno, this baby gets what it fucken deserves. I wish this line-up would have stayed permanent.

Information
Released: 1991
Label: Relativity
Website: www.coc.com
Band
Karl Agell: lead vocals
Woody Weatherman: lead guitar
Pepper Keenan: rhythm guitar, backing vocals
Phil Swisher: bass
Reed Mullin: drums, backing vocals

Tracklist
01. These Shrouded Temples
02. Damned for All Time
03. Dance of the Dead
04. Buried
05. Break the Circle
06. Painted Smiling Faces
07. Mine Are the Eyes of God
08. Shallow Ground
09. Vote with a Bullet
10. Great Purification
11. White Noise
12. Echoes in the Well
13. …Remain

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