God Forbid - Equilibrium Album Review

By Rhys Milsom / March 24, 2012

rating: 3.5

Facebook: www.facebook.com/officialgodforbid Release date: 26th March For 15 years now, metal mainstayers God Forbid have been delivering their brand of metal. Firstly and foremost loved by their fans for the stellar guitar-work we witness on each new album, God Forbid also trap infectious choruses, grooving and punishing rhythm sections, and venomous yet catchy vocals within their sound. The band first really came to attention at the tail end of the 90€™s mainly by touring with such bands as GWAR, Nile, Cradle of Filth and Candiria but also because of the release of their first full album, Reject The Sickness, in 1999. The album received a lot of heavy air-play, resulting in a lot of new fans for the band, and also for their introduction to the metal community to truly take off. After the release of this album, they were signed by Century Media Records and released the 2001 album, Determination. They then went on to play on the MTV2 Headbangers Ball tour alongside respected, established bands such as Shadows Fall and Lamb of God. After this, the band€™s incline can€™t be argued against. They€™ve sold over 200,000 albums in the US alone, with their last album, Earthsblood, debuting at #110 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart €“ selling over 5,300 copies in the first week. They€™ve been featured in music publications such as Kerrang!, Revolver, Decibel, Metal Hammer and Terrorizer, and, along with the bands that have already been mentioned, have toured with Slayer, Anthrax, Marilyn Manson, Trivium and As I Lay Dying. As you can see, they€™re not a band afraid of hard work and with every album their take on the €˜New Wave of American Metal€™ has been well received. So, the burning question is €“ will the band deliver with their new album, Equilibrium? Or has something gone drastically wrong in the God Forbid camp? http://youtu.be/0R73mPFvnyM Thankfully, the first track, Don€™t Tell Me What To Dream, shows us that the band are carrying on their heinous assault on our ears. Vocalist Byron Davis repeatedly snarls and spits €˜Don€™t tell me what to dream,€™ in his aggressively harsh style while the guitars jar and squeeze their way through the track, forcing their robust riffs under and over the smashed drums, which Corey Pierce tries to destroy with the amount of double-bass rolling through the track, alongside the acutely crashed cymbals. Scraping The Walls starts off with a melodic guitar-line which soon moulds into an eerie, almost proggy riff, reminding the listener of the most atmospheric parts of doom/prog/ambient metal bands such as Cult of Luna and Bossk, especially. The clean vocals here are really effective, adding a more crisp and refined feel to the track alongside the in-your-face, anguished harsh vocals. The solo shows the band€™s musicianship as well, as it slots in effortlessly amongst the more laid-back, wallowing sound. Overcome is a solid, rhythmical track which will go down a treat with fans of the band who prefer their faster-paced, more harmonised material. The clean vocals really do make the track, adding their €˜catchy-ness€™ to a track which is already a pretty gripping one. The solo is the best on offer, and for guitar nerds it€™ll be like a wet-dream. Even after the track€™s finished, you€™ll find yourself humming along to the melody that it€™s planted in your brain. Easily one of the strongest tracks on the album. The last track, Where We Come From, begins with a nasty, infectious riff which carries on throughout the track. Byron Davis€™ vocals are murderous, you can feel the seething fury spitting from his mouth with every word and the frenetic drumming and the heavy guitars ensure the end of the album leaves a mark on you, a mark of anger, like a bite. The breakdown is also well-done, not feeling forced and it comes in at just the right moment. With Equilibrium, God Forbid have another album that sets them apart from the younger bands splintering through at the moment. Even though it'll get a bit samey for some, it should be well-received by their fans and curious listeners alike.