North Carolina’s Corrosion of Conformity has certainly been a transformative act in their 30 year + career. Originally a punk outfit, they currently possess a sound akin to southern/ sludge/ crossover metal, bluesy at the heart and certainly made to move the body and soul. The ninth studio album IX contains 11 tracks and 42 minutes of southern fried heaviness, keeping the musical elements of the trio on point for maximum groove/hook effectiveness.
Reformed in 2010 with the Animosity lineup of bassist/vocalist Mike Dean, drummer/vocalist Reed Mullin, and guitarist/ vocalist Woody Weatherman, the album runs the gamut from punk oriented throwbacks such as “Denmark Vesey” and “The Nectar” to the psychedelic meets doom/sludge groove heaviness of opener “Brand New Sleep” and “Trusker”, the latter featuring this warm, lumbering bass overtone and layered Woody guitar sequences that just recalls classic Sabbath meets southern rock- and a gallop-oriented main riff that should have audiences roar with approval. Gone are the days where Corrosion of Conformity seek major label approval – they feel content to churn out material from the heart, and that’s what they are best suited for.
IX hones in on specific 3-4 chord sequences and allows the trio to build off of them organically. The guitar solos may feature certain trailing notes and wah wah pedal effects- but never go off into unsuited tangents. Best songs change daily – but for now the slithering southern groove oriented “The Hanged Man” and mid-tempo slamming “Elphyn” are proving to be the two cuts difficult to stay out of my brain matter. Expect natural production values over anything clean – this is a power trio throwback to the analog days, as if you can sense smoke emanating from the speakers in a cloudy, foggy haze.
Corrosion of Conformity keeps plugging along – veterans of the metal scene, IX will be another album most of their fans treasure to help wither their daily stress away, and entertain all the same. Isn’t that what the best metal records strive to attain?
Matt Coe, HMS
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