Neck of the Woods
The Annex of Ire
Pelagic Records
The newest dispatch from thorny Vancouver
metal arbour Neck of the Woods finds its rhythm method in midst of madness.
Six years into their licks, the progressive
outfit’s impressive arch of ascent from a two-song demo in 2013, to the
unveiling of their eponymous EP in 2015, to producing the sawblade hum of their
2017 debut LP, The Passenger, is
incontestable.
Chromatic technical prowess gleams on
“Ambivalence,” while the myopic soul-seeking of “Vision Loser'' levels the
landscape like an atomic blast. Jeff Radomsky’s voice rises above the fray of
“Strange Consolation” before he finds solace in the guitar wire spires that
pierce the celestial vault on “The Tower.”
Built on a slicker-than-wet-asphalt
foundation, thanks to the ministrations of Rain City Recorder producer/engineer
Jesse Gander, the entire album hangs together with palpable cohesion and
clarity of purpose.
From the door-kick introduction provided by
the title track it’s apparent that Neck of the Woods aren’t giving up any
ground when it comes to the gritty gains they’ve made.
Executing an exhaustive survey of how to stage
a multi-genre metal war without sacrificing substance, Neck of the Woods finds
room to roam within the untidy confines of The
Annex of Ire.
Best
Track: “The Tower”
By Christine Leonard
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