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Exodus: Shovel headed kill machine

02/12/11 || Smalley

For me, Exodus’s career trajectory is the complete opposite of most other big-name, old-school thrashers; instead of me digging most of their old shit but being indifferent to a lot of their new shit, the only old-school Exodus I really like is “(Absolutely) Fabulous disaster”, while I actually like every single record they’ve put out since the 2001 reformation. Funny how that worked out, but I’ll take it. Still, out of their post-reformation records, I have to go with 2005’s “Shovel headed kill machine” as my clear fave; while ’04’s “Tempo of the damned” was pretty good, Steve Souza’s silly, Bon Scott Jr.-vocals weren’t compatible with the dark new tone of modern Exodus, and Exhibits A & B didn’t really reinvent the wheel in “Shovel”‘s wake, so they didn’t have as much impact (is imminent?).

Again, all worthy records, but I still think the songs on “Shovel” were just assembled with a little more care, with a bit more of an eye turned toward sustaining momentum over the entire listen, instead of hitting individual peaks to the (mild) detriment of the overall experience. Plus, the fresh inputs from the band’s new drummer & singer also put “Shovel” further ahead of “Tempo”, and likewise, the awesome all-around production also puts it over either “Exhibit”. Not to imply that bands shouldn’t switch up production styles, or that those two don’t have good productions themselves, just that I would’ve preferred them sounding more like “Shovel”.

But enough generalities, how about some specifics? We’re kicked right in the fucken teeth immediately from the raw, blistering force of opener “Raze”, which is aided tremendously by the sharper, thicker, meatier edge producer Professor Sneap gave it, with a killer “rusty blade” quality that works perfectly with the fetish-for-violence lyrics: “Let’s start a fire, biggest one you’ve ever seen/You bring the matches, and I’ll bring the gasoline/Ignite it, delight it, the flames grow higher/Burn the world upon a funeral pyre!”. Yeah, burn baby fucken burn!!! The lyrics in question are delivered superbly by the raw, hardcore-tinged bark of then-new vocalist Rob Dukes, who proves to be a much more natural fit for Exodus 2.0 then his predecessor was, and who seals the deal for me when it comes to wondering just how the fuck “Raze” didn’t make our best album openers list.

8-minute epic “Deathamphetamine” keeps us going strong with a slow, ominous bass ‘n drums intro, before taking off into urgent shredding and vivid, chilling lyrics about turning into a half-dead slave to drug addiction. Oh, and speaking of the drums, new addition Paul Bostaph brings in some fresh energy on the kit as he pounds the shit outta it, and spices the proceedings with plenty of rapid beats and interesting, off-kilter fills. Anyway, the song’s formidable length comes from the wild, epic solo section a little while before the halfway point, courtesy of Gary Holt/Lee Altus (who put in excellent work all the way on “Shovel”), followed by a temporary return to the slowed-down tempo of the intro, before the song takes a complete left turn into one of the fastest riffs on the entire album, as Rob’s voice sounds like it’s about to fucken disintegrate, before finally coming full circle back to the style of the first few verses. Good fucken work, boys.

Unfortunately, coming off the heels of those first two blockbusters, the generally slower, less intense group comprised of “Karma’s messenger”, “Shudder to think”, “I am abomination”, and “Altered boy” can’t help but be a bit underwhelming. Granted, they’re all still catchy enough, and they have plenty of the same elements we loved from before, but some “just” good tracks coming after Exodus played two of the best cuts of their entire career (if not the best) can’t help but knock half a point off “Shovel”‘s final score. It may not sound like a lot, but when a record was this close to reaching the vaunted 9 level, you do get a little extra disappointed when it doesn’t claw up to that height.

Fortunately, the acidic, furious “Going going gone” grabs my full attention again, and the album closes out extremely strong with the trio of “Now thy death day come”, “.44 magnum opus”, and the title track. After all that, what more can I really for “Penis headed kill machine”? It doesn’t quite live up to full potential due to its slightly underwhelming midsection, but it’s still a damned awesome record, my favorite Exodus to date, and completes carving out the niche for modern Exodus that “Tempo” began. To put it another way: does unique, energetic, raw, dark, violent, modern thrash with great production/performances all-around sound like it’s up your (anal) alley? You better bet yer sweet lil’ ass it does.

8,5

Information
Released: 2005
Label: Nuclear Blast
Website: www.exodusattack.com
Band
Rob Dukes: vocals
Gary Holt: guitars
Jack Gibson: bass
Paul Bostaph: drums
Lee Altus: guitars

Tracklist
01. Raze
02. Deathamphetamine
03. Karma’s Messenger
04. Shudder To Think
05. I Am Abomination
06. Altered Boy
07. Going Going Gone
08. Now Thy Death Day Come
09. .44 Magnum Opus
10. Shovel Headed Kill Machine

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