Back in April, the Grammy-nominated Atlanta quintet, SEVENDUST, announced that their fourteenth studio album “Truth Killer” was slated for worldwide release on July 28th, 2023, via the band’s new label Napalm Records. Needless to say, the news got me all hyped up because here is a band that has been consistently excellent since their eponymous 1997 debut. If truth be said, I’ve always had a hard time putting a label on this bunch; on occasion, they sound like the coolest riff-slingers from the nu-metal gene pool, then, next thing you know, they absolutely nail some other jagged alternative-metal aesthetic. Yet, their core sound has remained distinguishable through all these years. A good deal of the lasting appeal boils down to vocalist Lajon Witherspoon‘s signature sound which is a cross between the soulful metal crooning of Corey Glover (LIVING COLOUR) and Howard Jones (LIGHT THE TORCH, ex-KILLSWITCH ENGAGE). On their previous outing “Blood & Stone,” (2020) these metal ruffians even had the nerve to drop a cover rendition of SOUNDGARDEN‘s haunting “The Day I Tried to Live” – and it sure did raise an eyebrow but in a good way. Then, of course, the other half of the band’s dark magic stems from the powerhouse riffs, courtesy of Clint Lowery and John Connolly – riffs that lay nothing short of a solid foundation. So, with a devil’s dozen albums already under their belt, has the old magic also rubbed off on this new endeavor?
The first single release sure didn’t help me feel any less anxious to get my hands on the full treat already. “Fence” was released a few months ahead of the album and the song turned out to be a massive, diabolically catchy riff monster – and the music video nicely echoed the animated video for KILLSWITCH ENGAGE‘s “Save Me” from way back. So, by way of charging the period of waiting with an additional layer of anticipation, the song sure worked its magic. (When the album finally came out, I found out that this particular song was chosen to close the selection – a killer move, I’d say!)
Then, the next video single, “Everything,” released about a month later, further upped the ante with its anthemic refrains and bulldozing riffs. In the way of creating a deeply empowering feeling, this song challenges TREMONTI‘s banging “Marching in Time” from 2021 even. At this point, I was already poised to like the new album quite a lot. This band never seems to disappoint – quite the opposite: SEVENDUST is only getting better with the years like such a heavyweight only should.
Straight off the bat, when the album finally came out, I found the album opener, “I Might Let the Devil Win,” to be layered with some glitchy beats and piano work that recall both the street-smart R&B of, say, WEEKND and Trent Reznor‘s moody industrial from yesteryear. Yeah, this is kind of a cliché straight from the nu-metal textbook but SEVENDUST sure knows how to make such clichés work in their favor – well, technically, they were one of the pioneering bands to breathe life into them, to begin with. Serving as the introduction to the album, the song sure does get the ball rolling.
In terms of killer riffs, the new selection packs in a ton of goodies. One song after the other rolls out banging riffs and singalong choruses with more or less empowering messages to boot. So, I guess it is not enough to simply know the tricks of the trade when it comes to this type of metal conduct; SEVENDUST has always stood out by virtue of speaking straight to your soul, almost as though preaching some sort of spiritual metal gospel or casting spells from the nu-metal grimoire. Released ahead of the album as yet another teaser, “Holy Water,” seemed to enforce this vibe to a resonant effect. When the album finally came out, “Won’t Stop the Bleeding,” further asserted this with its poignant chorus. When it comes to the album’s lyrics, in general, it is hard to avoid getting the feeling that these metal sages sure know what they’re singing about – whether the lyrics dwell on some personal struggles or more universal themes. In this respect, SEVENDUST is top-tier along with KORN, which has also gathered outstanding gravitas over the years.
While the selection is a pretty coherent cavalcade of banging riffathons, a couple of tracks stand out with a somewhat more nuanced approach to the serving of riffs. “Messenger” and “Leave Hell Behind” both come off a bit more mellow, the former with its triplet swing and the latter because of its softer verses. Yet, even at their softest, these voodoo santeros cut themselves no slack when it comes to packing a punch.
Long story short, SEVENDUST just dropped yet another selection of class-A songs with “Truth Killer.” Their back catalog was already defying the laws of statistics by being near-flawless; now, their latest installment is fast proving to be yet another endeavor of such quantum superposition. Some say our human civilization peaked in the late 1990s and, considering the quality of these recent releases of bands that made their first contributions to the world of metal music during that era, maybe they are on to something – unless, of course, these albums are but some sort of ghost particles from parallel realities, popping into existence at the whims of overlapping possibility waves.
Written by Jani Lehtinen
Tracklist
- I Might Let the Devil Win
- Truth Killer
- Won’t Stop the Bleeding
- Everything
- No Revolution
- Sick Mouth
- Holy Water
- Leave Hell Behind
- Superficial Drug
- Messenger
- Love and Hate
- Fence
Lineup
Lajon Witherspoon – vocals
Clint Lowery – lead guitars, backing vocals
John Connolly – rhythm guitars, backing vocals
Vince Hornsby – bass
Morgan Rose – drums
Label
Napalm Records
