Lamb of God has been a band that I go back and forth with. I'm either really in the mood for the heavy riffs and vocals, or they just aren't my cup of tea. It's a love hate relationship and I love it.
I went way too long without ever diving into the earlier releases of Lamb of God. The albums such as
Ashes of the Wake,
As The Palaces Burn, and
New American Gospel. I think what it was is that when I first heard
Sacrament, I was used to hearing the growls really crisp and could understand everything that was going on, little did I know it is one of the least heavy albums they have in their catalog.
Ashes of the Wake is the one out of the three earlier releases that I have found the most enjoyment out of. Honestly, I can say that
Hourglass has to be one of the best metal songs I've ever heard. It has everything I could ask for in a perfect Lamb of God song. Heavy as all hell riffs, fantastic vocals, and just sounds dirty to the point that it makes me want to rip my shirt off and fight someone. Of course, I think that's what Lamb of God go for.
New American Gospel is another one I want to put a bit more personal info on because I actually grew up owning this album, but never actually listened to it in full, and god damn I wish I did. I was only familiar with
Black Label off the album, and never bothered with the rest for some reason. Perhaps I was just too young to really appreciate what they were going for, but now I get it. It's the raw, gritty, heavy metal that they are known for.
The sad reality is, I wish I had listened to these albums before the few times i'd seen them. I imagine my time at those concerts would have been far more enjoyable. Not saying they weren't enjoyable, but they would have been even better. I'd happily see them again in a heartbeat, they always will have a place in my heart even if sometimes they just don't rub me the right way.