Deadsoul Tribe - A Lullaby For The Devil
InsideOut Music
Atmospheric Progressive Metal / Hard Rock
10 songs (54'10)
Release year: 2007
Deadsoul Tribe, InsideOut Music
Reviewed by Marty
Two years have passed since the last Deadsoul Tribe album The Dead Word and Devon Graves decided to break his yearly release cycle in favour of taking the time to re-define what Deadsoul Tribe is all about. The last album, The Dead Word saw more of a departure from the very heavy and doom-laden qualities of the soon to be classic A Murder Of Crows. This time around, the band's fifth album entitled A Lullaby For The Devil heralds a triumphant return to the Sabbath/Tool influenced sounds of A Murder Of Crows, all the while expanding their sound into more of a 70's styled progressive hard rock style.

Right from the first track Psychosphere, the return of the chunky riff-driven Tool inspired atmospheric metal is front and center. The very heavy mix of de-tuned thrash metal-like riffs, whispery and shouting vocal styles and the dark atmospheric qualities signify everything that is so great about this band. Goodbye City Life offers the listener a virtual tour-de-force of Deadsoul Tribe in all its glory with quite simply one of the best tracks that they have ever done. Mixing big bombastic riffs, quiet interludes with emotionally charged vocals by Devon Graves as well as some instrumental passages featuring nothing but flutes, tubular bells and a military snare, this track has that big expansive 70's progressive rock aura. It has everything from sombre to big and heavy sounds and great catchy vocal lines. The Tool/Ministry influences are once again on the table with Here Come The Pigs. Chunky and fast with pounding double bass, this one's sheer Ministry aggression complete with Al Jourgensen style narratives and eerie lead guitar fills over punishing riffs. Lost In You also uses the big ominous riffing style and mixes quieter sections for the verses and heavier for the chorus sections that features wrenching, emotional vocals by Devon Graves. The 70's is re-visited with A Stairway To Nowhere, complete with the Peter Gabriel style vocal delivery in this laid-back yet very rhythmic track. The dreamy vocal style really brings 70's Pink Floyd and The Moody Blues to mind. The Gossamers Strand is an instrumental track that once again shows Devon Grave's admiration for Jethro Tull in his use of flutes, piano and de-tuned heavy guitar to give us Jethro Tull with a modern twist. Any Sign At All uses big booming atmospheric riffs in a very hypnotic arrangement with Fear being largely acoustic before getting heavier with a big Hammond organ sound and lots of 70's style Uriah Heep backing voices. The Tool influence permeates the track Further Down and the album finishes with the title track A Lullaby For The Devil. This track mixes quiet, piano driven sections with trudging and heavy segments with hugely hypnotic riffing styles. The more abstract vocal style adds a nice touch and is a great finishing track to a great album.

Much better focussed than The Dead Word, A Lullaby For The Devil is a throwback to the style of albums like A Murder Of Crows and The January Tree all the while continuing to evolve the Deadsoul Tribe sound by encompassing a rather odd combination of influences that range from Tool, Ministry and Black Sabbath to Jethro Tull, Pink Floyd and King Crimson. The album does falter a bit midway through with the better material in the first half of the album but it's the sort of album that doom metal enthusiasts, thrash metal and extreme metal fans as well as classic progressive rock fans can all find common ground in. An album of contrasting soundscapes, it's great to hear progressive metal/hard rock that isn't just another variation on the Dream Theater style. This is truly unique stuff that has amazing atmosphere, melody and enough heaviness to still be in the "metal" category. Tired of nothing but different flavours of Dream Theater in all the new progressive metal? Deadsoul Tribe will leave a truly different "taste" in your mouth.....

Killing Songs :
Goodbye City Life, Here Come The Pigs, Lost In You and The Gossamers Strand
Marty quoted 85 / 100
Other albums by Deadsoul Tribe that we have reviewed:
Deadsoul Tribe - Deadsoul Tribe reviewed by Boris and quoted 85 / 100
Deadsoul Tribe - The Dead Word reviewed by Marty and quoted 82 / 100
Deadsoul Tribe - The January Tree reviewed by Marty and quoted 85 / 100
Deadsoul Tribe - A Murder Of Crows reviewed by Marty and quoted 92 / 100
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