Brethren, let us open the Book of Armageddon to the Chapter of BENEDICTION and read the Scriptures therein. I have been a devotee for many years, and my heart has been empty for want of BENEDICTION. After an extended drought, these metal brothers are back, and lo and behold, their prophet Dave Ingram has returned to lead them back to the promised land of Nuclear Blast.
This is a record I’ve been really looking forward to, as this band has always been a favorite of mine. Scriptures is an album for creating warm fuzzies and glows of nostalgia, not to break barriers or invent new paradigms. It’s about as pure a BENEDICTION album as you’ll get, right down to the familiar cover art with its shades of red and blue. It’s an album in the tradition of past classics like Transcend The Rubicon and The Dreams You Dread, with the boys hammering out warm sounding, catchy death metal that sounds like a cool mix of CELTIC FROST, OBITUARY and the less manic NAPALM DEATH. Some of the tunes such as ‘Neverwhen’ sound so archetypal that they border on parody. But man, it’s good to hear Dave Ingram’s roaring “OOGH” and “AAAGH” all over the place again.
Every song here has that prime BENEDICTION sound, there are no deviations from formula. My favorites are ‘Scriptures In Scarlet’, ‘Stormcrow’, the thunderous hook-laden ‘Tear Off The Wings’ and final thrashy stomp of ‘We Are Legion’. Any of which could have been on The Grand Leveller or Transcend The Rubicon.
Rejoice, O my brothers, for BENEDICTION hath not deceived or betrayed thee; their metal hearts are pure.
Review By: Dr. Abner Mality
BENEDICTION
Scriptures
Nuclear Blast
4 / 6