Gods of the Earth borrows heavily from Black Sabbath, Kyuss and High on Fire, fusing the best elements of all three without ever getting better than any of them. Granted, few bands in history are better than those three, and Gods of the Earth a good alternative for anyone who vainly craves new music from Sabbath or Kyuss. Following up their acclaimed (and very similar) debut, the Austin quartet are already on the AC/DC route of never straying from what they do best. Their songs are loud and catchy, like a punchier, post-punk Hawkwind, and the melodies are consistently solid. Instrumental opener 'The Sundering' recalls Tolkien-esque scenery, and follow-up 'The Frost-Giant's Daughter' would sound right at home on the Heavy Metal soundtrack. That sets the stage for a whole album of tuneful, solid and highly derivative stoner metal with lyrics cribbed from Magic cards.
Bassist Bryan Richie (no, not that bassist Brian Ritchie) gets buried in the mix, perhaps in an attempt to recall old-school Sabbath and Stooges production, and most of the music is overwhelmed by singer/guitarist J.D. Cronise's leads and drummer Travis Wingo's crash cymbal. Cronise's vocals also get steamrolled, making the case that Gods of the Earth is best as background music--sure, the hooks are most important, but remember that the two aforementioned influences had Ozzy Osbourne and Iggy Pop leading them. 'Fire Lances of the Ancient Hyperzephyrians' is as much fun as it sounds, the stoner beast 'Maiden, Mother & Crone' hits like something Dave Wyndorf would be proud of, and the series of riffs that the band connected for the seven-and-a-half minute 'The White Sea' prove that there's no shortage of good ideas spilling from Cronise's axe. Like their name, The Sword are generic but kind of awesome. Hopefully they'll become a band you'd pay to see headline on their next album.
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