REVIEW: PENANCE - ALPHA & OMEGA

 

PENANCE - ALPHA & OMEGA (Martyr Music Group, 2002)

Produced by Maria Abril

Recorded at Stoney´s Polar Bear Lair

Artwork by Mike Smail

Tracks: 1- Wizards of Mind, 2- New Machine, 3- See the Light, 4- Eden Fallen, 5- Reraching, 6- Love Dies, 7- Cold, 8- Drown Me in a Sea of Empty, 9-Misery Song

Penance is a classic band that mixes doom, heavy rock and metal into their own style, making albums like this one that are destined to be classics of the style like Trouble´s "The Skull" or "Psalm 69". It is no surprise that Penance´s drummer played in Cathedral´s great "Forest of Equilibrium" album (in fact Penance released their debut album on Lee Dorrian´s label). Now, 10 years later here arrives "Alpha and Omega" with the addition to the lineup of Mary Bielich (November´s Doom, Em Sinfonia) and Matt Tuite (Wickerman, Mustache). The sound is great with a lot of rocking riffs and interesting ideas that make each of the songs clearly original and unique. The great thing about Penance is that they know how to do each track different from the other adding new ideas, melodies and riffs. The guitars have that seventies sound that is a charachteristic of this band and of those mentioned above, really well mixed (along with Mary´s killer bass and the rocking drums). A must for fans of the style.

Favorite tracks: All this CD is really crushing. It leaves you asking for more Penance!!

Contact: www.martyrmusicgroup.com or www.penancemusic.com