Hammers of Misfortune - The Locust Years - Reviews

John Cobbett- Guitars
Mike Scalzi- Guitars/Vocals
Sigrid Shiel- Acoustic and electric piano, Hammond B3, Backing vocals
Jamie Myers- Vocals, Bass
Chewy- Drums

The fanatical brouhaha surrounding Hammers Of Misfortunes last opus, the stunningly ambitious 'The August Engine', has yet to show any signs of stilling- various circles proclaim it as one of the finest works of the new millennium, a sparkling new induction into heavy metal Olympus. My thoughts regarding the matter are somewhat less sensational- while I regard 'The August Engine' as a startlingly ambitious work, I persist in my assertions that Slough Feg are very much the superior band (and indeed the most exciting traditional metal band in music today…it's a trendy notion, but it's true). Yet, to compare the two would be a tremendous injustice to 'The August Engine''s brilliantly bold sense of adventure and exquisite vision, painting with broad strokes of 'Red' King Crimson, 'Peace Sells' Megadeth/ 'Master Of Puppets' Metallica, Gotham City, 'Animals' Pink Floyd, 'Farewell To Kings' Rush, 'A Distant Thunder' Helstar, 'Johnny The Fox' Thin Lizzy and prominent splashes of frenetic Paganini-esque classicism, The August Engine is a complex pastiche composed of innumerable ornate details that converge, quite beautifully, to create one cohesive, unified portrait of a strikingly daring band. Without question, 'The August Engine' stands head and shoulders over the occasionally disjointed and awkward 'The Bastard', and I had hopes that 'The Locust Years' would continue this trend.

Perhaps I shouldn't be so surprised that the band has undergone a stylistic metamorphosis every bit as drastic as the jarring transition between 'The Bastard' and 'The August Engine'. Brought to the fore is the classical/operatic grandeur and pronounced melody of 'The August Engine', its coy flirtations with ‘70s prog have given way to wanton expressions of love, consummated via a host of proto-prog accoutrements that froth assertively to the brim. Smothered entirely is the trebly Nordic tremolo of 'The Bastard' (being channeled into John Cobbett's rather boring black metal project Ludicra), as well as a substantial suppression of the frenzied, sporadic Bay Area-isms of 'The August Engine'. The gravely nihilistic despair of 'The August Engine' has been replaced by a snide and sardonic bitterness, characterized by the ironic back cover, depicting the band as tuxedo, dress and tiara donning, debonair aristocrats. Needless to say, the seedy Nietzschean spite, atavistic, atheistic rhetoric and sarcastic eloquence of the lyrical content has Cobbett and Scalzi written all over it.

I should perhaps issue a word of warning here- 'The Locust Years' is substantially less “metal” in certain senses than the two records that preceded it. In fact, there is a worrying tendency towards ultramodern slickness on certain parts of the album here (more on this later, though rest assured that this inclination is nowhere near prominent enough to mar this album as a whole), as well as a general downplaying of the more unabashedly METAL facets of the Hammers sound. Opening with a bombastic, almost “Battery”-esque interlude, supplemented with distinctly Jon Lord-esque (circa 'Shades of Deep Purple') Hammond and accented with a heavy, sinewy riff that sounds suspiciously like something off Mastodon's 'Leviathan', “The Locust Years” announces from the very outset that this record will distinguish itself from its celebrated predecessor, and has absolutely no intentions of retracing a well-trodden path. Razor-sharp quasi-thrash riffing, not entirely removed from those exhibited on the 'Atavism''s brilliant instrumental interludes, surfaces in the verse sections, but it would appear to this reviewer that the guitar sound is not quite as sinewy as that on 'August Engine''s more fervent passages. The track progressively gains dramatic momentum until it SWELLS into a mesmeric spell of twin guitar interplay that aptly reflects JUST how high the level of musicianship is on this, and indeed any other Scalzi/Cobbett endeavor.

“We Are The Widows” is another exhibition of lofty, slightly portentous songwriting, striding forth with assured intent to lumbering, foreboding chords. Note the change of guard as far as female vocals go, with Sigrid Shiel and Jamie Myers succeeding ex- Fireball Ministry lass Janis Tanaka. I do have to say that I rather prefer the female vocals here to Janis', who had a tendency to sound a tad forced and shrill on occasion. The dual-tracked female vocals are forceful, expressive and well-produced here, no complaints whatsoever from this reviewer. The morose, baroque pomp of this track runs deep, with insistent grand piano and synth rumbling ominously beneath the cheerless chords and assuming the lead during the hook passages. It really all comes together to make for some gloriously dramatic doom, a considerable contrast to the piercing, stabbing explosion of “Trot Out The Dead”, which bears more similarity to Slough Feg, particularly the more compact, leaner direction employed on 'Atavism', than anything Hammers Of Misfortune have done to date, most apparent during the chorus section, which is vintage Scalzi….a bit odd, considering Cobbett penned the entirety of this album. A brief, blistering lead and a leftfield, deliciously affected chamber pop bridge later, we are thrown right back into the swirling, delirious fray, with assertive Uriah Heep organs bolstering hyperactive rhythmic guitars and Scalzi's imaginative vocal harmonies. “Famine's Lamp” is dreamy, shadowy medieval folk bearing spectral similarities to the likes of Trees and Agincourt, though considerably darker, its apocalyptic, fatalistic bleakness falling squarely within the 'The August Engine' peg, making it a bit of an anomaly here. Of course, we are presented here with a textbook example of the meticulousness and intricacy of a Hammers Of Misfortune composition, with ghostly Procol Harum-esque keys cooing mournfully in the background, exerting a subtle, yet distinct presence on the proceedings.

Lone stinker here- “War March”, which smells a bit too much like Dream Theater or Liquid Tension Experiment for my liking. I have absolutely no idea what's going on here, but there is a striking polish to this track that comes off like a take on smartypants pseudo-prog metal. I'm not suggesting that there is an equivalent wank quotient here, but there is a certain something in this particular number that really turns me off, and there is nothing less sexy, in my opinion, than Dream Theater (of any era). Maximum points for the sterling instrumental “Election Day”, which features a maniacal, waltzing Vincent Crane/Keith Emerson organ solo of breathtaking quality, totally excellent! All in all, while I suspect this may be the most polarizing effort from the band thus far, and one that has already alienated a number of folks I am In contact with, I am certain that this record is another excellent outing of heady, progressive, thoughtful and startlingly stylish heavy metal that, while not being as doggedly odd as 'The Bastard' or as obtusely brilliant as 'The August Engine', remains a mordant masterwork that will captivate admirers of intelligent heavy music. While it has more of an immediate impact than either of its two predecessors, the record yields new revelations with each consequent spin, and that is the sign of an album to be treasured. Class.