Review: Plaguewielder – Succumb to the Ash

Lately, I’ve been following this group of guys from Ohio as they have been in many bands with good music, but either call it quits or work on something new and focus on that entirely. Bands like Unbodied, Baal, Horse Drawn Death Machine and Doctor Smoke have been around the Ohio area for years. I’ve actually genuinely enjoyed each of these bands and they were all short lived and massively talented. Well, Doctor Smoke is still playing and kicking some major ass but it’s good to see another band rise from the ashes of the other bands from that area. Thus, Plaguewielder is born! A blackened sludge/doom act with major riffing, tone and substance that you just cannot get enough of. The band also utilizes gigantic doom atmosphere to induce fear and aggression onto the listener. It exceeded my expectations greatly and I think you all will enjoy their debut album, Succumb to the Ash.

Starting off with heavy riffing and quality sludge tone, the groove starts almost immediately when “Commence in the Ritual of Death” kicks in. Seditz’s vocals are a raw and tight mid range scowl, fitting perfectly into the music. The riffing sucks you in and the finale on the song is great too as the guitars give us a little something in the leads department. Very chill, not technical or over your head but very subtle and interesting. The second track is more of an interlude/drone piece, “Beyond the Body” is a transmitted signal sound that drones on for about 2 minutes. The track is necessary thought as it sets up “Dissolve into Pure Light” perfectly. I like what Plaguewielder does though and gives the listener an option to listen to that instead of making it apart of the song. Great management there. This third track continues on what the first track did and that was endless amounts of bass fuzz and excellent sludge guitar tone. Drums are simple and track perfectly with the guitars. Vocals again are heavy as hell yet very audible. I also enjoy the fact that you can hear the lyrics that are being belched at us. It’s very rare that you can understand someone doing this style of vocal work. Mid song the tempo slows a little bit and ambiance kicks in via keyboard, delivering a massive atmosphere. The sludge never stops either and the combination of the two fit in incredibly well! I never thought I’d be enjoying atmospheric sludge/doom as much as this but Plaguewielder have hit the nail on the head here.

“Destined for the Dirt” storms in and the gratuitous amount of groove is still massively present. The groove and experimental nature of Plaguewielder is what I love so much about them, as they take an older genre that is massively respected and add a little something to the mix; the result is a rich sound with lasting appeal. Another very mellow yet kick ass solo is on this song, followed by an outro that is absolutely crushing. “Inhabiting the Forbidden” is completely different from the rest of the album. The 5th track starts off with an uneasy electronic feeling, which dissipates and turns into a melancholic piano arraignment. The unsettling chords used on the piano are skin crawling and the feeling of dread sets in as you hear rainfall in the distance. What a transition song! That was dark yet very beautiful.

“Palms of the Earth” begins with a simple bass riff, that progresses into a full on devastating riff session with crashing drums and screams howling in over everything. After the dramatic intro, the tempo picks up slightly but the rhythm is still very much thunderous. The ringing chords over the riff on this song is great, the dark magic and alchemy on this track with all of the little additives makes this track very addicting. Before moving onto the final track of the album, Plaguewielder thought it would be time to toss in another transition piece(Beyond the Mind), this time feeling like more spiritual, almost like on Junius’ last EP. After that comes in the final track: “Offered Up to the Sky”. The bands already traditional groove schematic come in but one thing seems to change, the use of the sludge riffing over a quick piano lick is wonderful. The changing atmosphere as the riffs transition also feels natural and is definitely enjoyable. Ending the track and album with a saxophone solo over the riffs was probably the best use of a saxophone in metal I’ve ever heard. This band put a lot of time into making sure they could make something widely consumable yet stand out from the rest. I think they succeed as Succumb to the Ash gives us thought provoking material to work with. The tunes are good enough to tap your toes and headbang to and the writing is magical enough to be respected.

Don’t worry, Plaguewielder’s use of keys and a freaking saxophone within the sludge genre will not distemper your thought process if you are a huge fan of the genre. Fine, you may come in skeptical and disapprove of thinking outside of the box at first but I feel that this is hands down one of the best sludge albums I’ve ever heard. The groove is undeniably catchy, the riffs are top notch, the drumming isn’t a blasting fuck fest and the vocals slide in perfectly with the music. Adding the keys and brass to the mix only made this album better and gave it a progressive & atmospheric feeling. It has massive replay value and I hope you give it a try. It’s one of those underground albums that everyone needs to hear. I highly recommend this album to EVERYONE.

8.9 out of 10

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http://plaguewielderoh.bandcamp.com/