Band Origin: Austin, Texas, USA
Genre: Stoner Metal / Doom / Heavy Metal
Label: Kemado
Running Time: 48 minutes
Release Date: February 14, 2006
Best Part: The fine balance of heavy power and speed, and purely instrumentally driven sections such as on The March of Lor.
Favorite Tracks: Winters Wolves, Freya, March of the Lor
Grade: 4.5
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Age of Winters in way more than 20 words or less:
The debut album by The Sword is a record that demands to be listened to by anyone who considers themselves fans of vintage feeling doom and stoner metal and enjoys monstrously sludgy riffs of the fast and down-trodden varieties.
The debut album by The Sword is a record that demands to be listened to by anyone who considers themselves fans of vintage feeling doom and stoner metal and enjoys monstrously sludgy riffs of the fast and down-trodden varieties.
The Band:
The Sword is four piece heavy metal band from Austin, Texas who's music has become a name synonymous with the retro style of early heavy metal and doom seen in bands like Black Sabbath. The Sword's debut album and second release were centered around both slow, heavy, sludgy riffs and fast, thrash inspired elements in order to create some of truly raw sounding, vintage feeling metal that appeals to a wide audience of metal fans. Their most recent release, Warp Riders saw a change in direction with the creation of a concept album built on a foundation of hard rock, or stoner rock, while still injecting elements central to their past success, and without at all letting go of their raw, vintage feeling sound.
The Swords other releases include: Gods of the Earth (2008), and Warp Riders (2010)
Jay's Take on Age of Winters:
If you've never taken the time to sit down and listen to Age of Winters, do yourself a favor and do it. Not just because I'm writing about it right now. Not because it's their first album and should therefore be the starting point of your Sword listening. Just because it speaks for itself - and because it's fucking awesome. Whether you're a fan of the direction The Sword have gone in since the release of Warp Riders or not, chances are you were a fan of their music on Age of Winters and Gods of the Earth. From the opening moments on Age of Winters vocalist/guitarist John D. Cronise, guitarist Kyle Shutt, bassist Bryan Richie and former drummer Trivett Wingo blanket you with raw, heavy instrumentation that gives off echoes of that vintage early heavy metal vibe and then dips it into the slow, grimy power of stoner metal and sludge metal, and throws in some fast, thrashy influence for good measure. What you get is a fine balance of power, heaviness and speed that just gives you the wanton desire to headbang and tell your nearest disliked individual to promptly go fuck themselves. Cronise's use of stripped down, clean chanted vocals are another element that have earned The Sword comparisons in sound to bands such as Sabbath, who the band has cited as a major influence, along with bands such as the Melvins, which is no surprise with their down-trodden sludge inspired riffs. Cronise is responsible for much of the musical composition in the group, and was the primary source of material when the band recorded Age of Winters, taking much of his lyrical inspiration from literature and Norse mythology.
Sample of the Day:
Today, a little instrumental track in March of the Lor and perennial favorite Freya.
- J
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