CoC : Warlord - Rock the Foe Hammer : Review

Warlord - _Rock the Foe Hammer_
(SolidState, 1999)
by: Alex Cantwell (7.5 out of 10)

Warlord, a Canadian trio, went public with their debut self-titled EP two years back, and finally they have released their first full-length effort, strangely titled _Rock the Foe Hammer_. After digesting the EP, which in a nutshell was doom-influenced hardcore, I expected the same musical direction on any future albums, but my expectations were not proven to be correct. Warlord are still rooted in somewhat of a hardcore vein, but seem to have taken on a sort of freeform avantgardeness akin to their labelmates Roadside Monument and, to an extent, Frodus -- and while that -is- interesting, I was disappointed that they did not run with the doom meets hardcore thing, because I thoroughly enjoyed it and thought it to be original. _RtFH_ was produced by the increasingly popular Steve Austin (Today Is the Day), and he did a great job of bringing all of the nuances of Warlord's twiddling and "jamming" into the forefront of the mix. Yes, I said it -- they are "jamming" on many songs on the album, but they are a tight enough unit to hold it together and make it work. Although this band bears the heavy moniker of Warlord, they should appeal to not only fans of metal, but to those who appreciate indie rock and heavy alternative bar band music as well.

(article published 9/12/1999)