I'll Be Damned - Road to Disorder

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Danish Heavy Rockers, I’ll BE DAMNED, have released their second album and it is a rager.  As an American, what I hear that passes for hard rock these days is pure trash.  If more bands sounded like this one, Rock and Roll might be saved; they combine many different sounds from old school rock to Doom to straight up Metal into one full on train of destruction. The first track, “Stephen Hawking Talking,” rocks a lot harder than the title would suggest.  Solid drumming, riffs that are heavy but with modern tone, and a vocalist who sings his ass off round off an excellent intro track that pulled me in from the get go.  Not only does he have one of the coolest names I’ve ever heard but Stig Gamborg has some pipes that sound like they could explode at any second.  The guy is constantly bursting at the seams with seemingly unlimited energy.

The second track, “The Entire Universe,” sounds like 80’s Doom Metal with thick slices of riffs that probably put holes into the fingers of guitarists Boris Tandrup and Kristian Sloth; the low end bass of  Jens Lunde wouldn’t sound out of place on a Stoner Rock/Doom album either. The song has a completely different vibe than the opener but still exudes that same spark that lights a searing fire.“Luck Could Change,” brings the album to the halfway point but also brings the music to yet another style, this time a hard Blues vibe, from the leads all the way to the vocals.  The drumming is splashy and helps drive the song.  Again, the band does another 360 turn with their sound but still retains all the best elements.

“Flag Follows The Money,” takes the opposite approach with temp and displays a really high octane Rock and Roll vibe…think CLUTCH on steroids.  It is a short but sweet ride but after the track before it, the band’s dynamics show through. What would happen with Sludge and Doom had a two way marriage with Hard Rock but cheated on it with EVERY TIME I DIE?  You would get the track “Hanging Job,” and you would also get your faced rocked clean off. The last track, “Arrow of Time (Road to Disorder)” is an odd but fitting closing track. The sounds contained within the almost eight minutes are hazy yet move like a ballad but have the atmosphere of an even more gloomy ALICE IN CHAINS. I have never heard of this band before but, honestly, they blew me away with this album.  No matter what styles they throw in, the album remains highly consistent, entertaining, and interesting.  Hey, bland American rock radio?  Pay attention, this is how you do it.

Songwriting: 9
Originality: 9
Memorability: 9
Production: 9