I’ve always loved the idea behind Demon Lung. Here you’ve got this Satanic, occult doom metal band… based outta Las Vegas. Hey, I’ve been to Vegas, and there’s nothing about that city that screams “occult doom metal.” (Now, if they were a mafia-themed doom band, on the other hand…)
That said, if this outfit was from, say, Iowa, I might not be giving them another chance. Their 2013 debut, The Hundredth Name, was more or less what happens when you stuff a Devil’s Blood album full of enough pinch harmonics to bring a biker convention to a screeching halt. Hey, it’s probably hard enough to find a metal guitarist in Vegas that you can’t really specify you don’t want someone who thinks he’s Zakk Wylde.
From the opening note—excluding the instrumental intro—you can tell that this album isn’t traditional doom metal. The chugging riffage of “Behold, the Daughter” sounds more like thrashy sludge, while its backbeat borders on black metal… although it does slow down eventually, and there isn’t a pinch harmonic to be heard. “I Am Haunted” is actually anchored by a pretty decent doom riff, while “Gypsy Curse” comes off initially like Crowbar with soaring female vocals, although buddy does let loose with a couple guitar squealies on the chorus.
At least it mostly sounds like they ditched Zakk Mylde—this is definitely better than the debut.
www.facebook.com/demonlungband
