When it comes to metal, I mainly stick to the classics: Metallica, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Slayer — those are my go-to’s when I crave the thrash and hair of the 80’s. And while I occasionally dip my toes into the waters of Sleep’s discursive stoner metal or Ministry’s industrial insanity, I admit that modern metal is not in my immediate wheelhouse of musical expertise. Yet here I am, imploring you to hold off on your 30th listen of Mitski’s The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We and instead treat your ears to the scorching riffs and mourning vocals of Baroness’ new album STONE.
The Savannah/Philly-based prog metal band was only vaguely on my radar before this latest release (I had seen the baroque grandeur of their art for albums such as Yellow & Green and Gold & Grey) but I never stopped to truly check them out. STONE, however, caught my attention early. The album’s lead single “Last Word” was a blazing anthem that refused to be ignored. The track opens with a nasty drum fill and an even nastier fuzz-drenched riff courtesy of rhythm guitar chug specialist and lead singer John Baizley. Unlike most metal bands however, Baizley’s lyrics and vocal melodies don’t take a backseat to the distorted guitar wizardry. Instead, Baroness crafts catchy hooks and focuses on good song structure, walking the line between alt-rock accessibility and metal music tropes without so much as a falter.
STONE is an extension of this approach to songwriting, creating a lean, well-balanced tracklist that runs fluidly front to back. The record is bookended by two acoustic tracks, the introductory “Embers” and the conclusion “Bloom.” Not immediately being met with a blistering metal riff to open the LP was unexpected…and honestly amazing. The aura of death and rebirth is present throughout STONE, but by beginning and ending with the intimacy of an acoustic guitar those themes become elevated when the heaviness does arrive; instead of being overshadowed by a relentless onslaught of noise song after song after song.