(SpiritWorld‘s new album Helldorado will be arriving on March 21st on Century Media Records, and we have Gonzo‘s take on it today.)
I’ve often described metal as the perfect additive to any other type of music. When done right, it can be an incredible marriage of styles. Results may vary, of course, but the ongoing explosion of subgenres within the metal realm will prove the point either way.
This fact will undoubtedly be obvious to anyone reading this. But the fun part of such experimental alchemy that so many bands have tried over the years? It creates new sonic territory yet to be explored by anyone else.
Enter Stu Folsom and his bedazzled cowboy cohorts in SpiritWorld. I was (and still am) hopelessly hooked on their 2022 album DEATHWESTERN, with its furious Slayer-inspired riffs and paint-peeling vocals. The fusing of country, folk, and dust-crusted Sergio Leone-style storytelling made the album worth its weight in gold. Three years later, the big question about new album Helldorado is whether or not it holds up to its predecessor.
Let’s find out.
In many ways, DEATHWESTERN was the soundtrack to being chased through the desert on horseback by a pack of demonic cannibals. Specific? Yes. Accurate? Also yes.
If that’s the case, then Helldorado is the soundtrack to confronting said demonic cannibals, slaying them in a blaze of bullets and blood, and having a drink and a smoke about it after the fact.
The album begins on a somewhat unexpected note with “Abilene Grime,” a song that sounds almost too freewheeling and upbeat for a band capable of writing riffs that would make Kerry King’s head spin. It’s catchy with a distinctly punk-rock energy, but kicking off the album this way almost sends the wrong message. After its opening minute, though, the song places SpiritWorld back into more familiar territory: Staccato riffage, Folsom’s defiant bark, a dash of unhinged twang, and head-nodding grooves.
And that’s where the band’s spurs shine the brightest. Their ability to churn out absolutely disgusting riffs and fuse them with their Old West aesthetic makes them the most relevant cowboys from Hell since Dimebag did it 30 years ago. “No Vacancy in Heaven” and “Western Stars and the Apocalypse” are quick to remind you of this.
The full-band shout-along chorus of “Prayer Lips” sounds like a nod to Agnostic Front, surprisingly, and that’s where you begin to understand where Folsom & co are headed from here. When they lean into the balls-to-the-wall aggression, it just works every time. But maybe the band understands they can only get so much mileage out of this formula, and Helldorado opens up their sound to new possibilities. Songs like “Prayer Lips” and the folky ending dirge of “Annihilism” add more variety to the mix, to be sure, but I also wonder if they drift away from what works best for this band.
That’s not to say SpiritWorld ignore what they do best, though. The galloping rollercoaster of “Waiting on the Reaper” is pure destruction, namely in its final minute, and “Oblivion” and “Cleansing” make sure the album doesn’t end on a subdued whisper.
It’s going to be interesting to see how SpiritWorld evolves from here. When they dial it in and stick to what works best, they hit a bullseye that’d make Doc Holliday grin. They also prove that they aren’t just a one-trick riff pony. Wherever the road takes them from here, I’m happy to go along for the ride.
https://spiritworldprophet.bandcamp.com/album/helldorado-24-bit-hd-audio
https://spiritworld.lnk.to/Helldorado-AlbumPR
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