Baroness - Gold & Grey

Baroness
Gold & Grey
2019
Spotify

There are very few acts out there today still doing Heavy metal/ Hard Rock. Some band exist on the fringes but they have all failed to invade any kind of popular scene. IT doesn't mean the music is not good, it means that the public have just fallen out of favor with it. The same can be said for a hell of a lot of  Guitar Rock where it has almost become relegated to levels of "Guitar Hero". Baroness however have never quite bought in to that idea. Their music has always remained true to the core of their sound, rarely wavering. The thing is they are probably some of the best in the game, the problem with that though is there aren't to many new ideas here. We've heard all of this before, not from Baroness, but from every other Rock band playing hard and fast. Are there guitar solos? Yes. Screaming lyrics? Sure. Double Bass? You Bet. However their sound is not crazy inventive like The Mars Volta, or imbued with deep emotion like Deaftones. Instead they just sort of latch on to those sounds that are hallmarks of the genre. I get why this excites people, no one else is really doing this kind of music on the level that they are, but there is a reason for that, it's played out. If loud and fast is what you are looking for that Baroness have it, but if it's new and exciting those moments just are not here.

Some songs like "Tourniquet" have great moments like it's wonderful bridge, but then fall back into the same old tropes. I'm sure if you were deep into this genre you could pick up on some of the super subtle things that make baroness different, but for the casual listener they never do much to separate themselves from the pack. The songs just end up sounding the same on this album even though it all works perfectly fine. The band's musicianship and skill will always ensure that their albums are good, but just good is not enough for a genre that has been around for this long. I guess it's fine if it's your thing, but I can't imagine this album, unlike their previous one's, bringing in any new blood. Good but predictable that is where Gold & Grey unfortunately lands.

6.9 out of 10