THE NEW BLACK

A quick checklist. Do you base your musical choices on the following key phrases or images: Oil, Gasoline, Bikers, Zakk Wylde, Pinched Harmonics, Gruff Vocals with a hint of Gruff Melody? Congratulations, you're going to love 'The New Black'. If you were expecting them to have carried the torch of the final offering from SYL, you're shit out of luck. As it is then, this is effective, well performed, chest-beating man-rock of the highest order. And I hate it. It's soulless, dumb, and designed (yes, designed) to appeal to a very select demographic of Mechanics and Housewives with too many tattoos. It takes its Southern Metal influence to the point of raping it of importance and a future. You will listen to Corrosion of Conformity after this and wonder what you were thinking. That's why I hate it. Sure, play badly and write songs that make me want to plug my ears, and I'll not be nice about it. Write songs to a formula with the sole purpose of appealing to the cash-rich middle-class (Kid Rock for example), and you get zero-tolerance. I'm not even going to mention the names of the performers or the songs. Don't buy it, don't listen out of curiosity, and for goodness sake, if you see it approaching, run a mile. By the way, if you love Zakk Wylde, this is a 10 out of 10. Seriously, it's awesome.

LABEL:

FORMAT:

AFM Records

Album

THE NEW BLACK

Review by Steve Cowan

RUNNING TIME:

47:36

RELEASE DATE:

23rd Jan 2009

TRACK LISTING

1) Everlasting
2) Why I Burn
3) Coming Home
4) More Than A Man
5) Simplify
6) 50 Ways To Love Your Liver
7) Ballad of Broken Angels
8) Not Me
9) Superman Without A Town
10) The Man Who Saw The Universe
11) Welcome To Point Black
12) Wound

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:

Germany

"It takes its Southern Metal influence to the point of raping it of importance and a future."