These three Swiss guys collectively known as Herod operate on the outer borderlands of metal music. Their trade is post hardcore and sludge metal. Many bands doing this kind of stuff are listed on well-known metal music websites, but Herod is missing in the biggest database. I find it confusing... However, Herod are now listed here, and it's left for everyone to think this up themselves.

I don't own many sludge metal albums, and I am a beginner with the style. Same goes with djent, which is also a big part of Herod's sound. Yes, this has Meshuggah's nontraditional rhythms stylings. Here, one won't get to hear 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4 beat much. Herod hardly get to faster things unlike Meshuggah, so sludge is surely what they are about. Funeral doom this ain't, though.

Rhythm section, it's a very important thing in a band like Herod. The bass guitar sounds like a juggernaut, like it should. The organic-sounding drums are great, too. Heavy kick drumming, and cymbals and hi-hat cover the another border of the sound spectrum. Add to that a heavy, buzzing 7-string guitar work. In a word: dense. However, there's space for sound effects and ambience, and they are regularly utilized. So, the soundscape is surely filled with nuances. What a hefty-sounding album! Plus, it's contains both mechanical and human feels.

But when thinking about catchniness, I must state that this isn't very catchy at all. There are a few guitar riffs, that manage to bore into a brain, but this quirkiness with rhythms lose me pretty fast. Loads of trebly and discordant licks don't help to get these songs, nor do ramming djent riffs. They simply sound too samey! Same goes with quite a big proportion of the songs, too. However, there is stuff, that is more contagious, but it's in minority.

Vocals are filled with angst. One-note hardcore style screamy bellowing or more growling voice is everything about this facet. Well, the lyrics are about frustration, self-flagellation and dark feelings.

So, Herod's debut might suit for those who want it heavy and slow-ish. One has to love irregular rhythmic playing (and probably mathematics), because that is what this is all about. This is too much for me to sit through in one go, and works much better in short snippets.

Rating: 5- (out of 10) ratings explained

Reviewed by Lane
01/15/2015 17:58