American Heritage: Sedentary

I confess that I don't find the name of this band to be all that striking. I don't say that out of some sense of overdone patriotism; to me, American Heritage risks sounding more like a textbook title, the name of a PBS special, or the sloganeering of political talk. Sure, there is a thing called American Heritage, but such things are difficult to define, let alone understand. As a band name, it just doesn't have the touch that gives it the necessary punch.

Aside from my quibbles about the band name, Sedentary is a terrific album that I enjoyed from start to finish. The album begins with the strong "City of God," a track that establishes a punk-infused mood, complete with straightforward guitar parts and limited harmony. The vocals, set slightly in the background, sound just right. To some extent, this was my favorite track. The rest of the album, for better or worse, is slightly different, both in terms of tone and of sound. I liked every track, but sometimes thought that the band was working with a fairly limited palette. The good side of this is that they are channeling the best of the sludge sound. At times, I could hear a little bit of Mastodon in the music, particularly on "Chronic Obliteration." It comes as no surprise, I guess, that Bill Kelliher appears as a guest on parts of this record. Fans of Mastodon will hear it.

Part of the fun of listening to this album comes from the punny song titles. I'm thinking of tracks like "Fetal Attraction," "Tomb Cruise," and "Morbid Angle," to name only a few. The songs don't necessarily speak to the puns themselves, but I thought the dark humor was fun and refreshing. I was a little grumpy about the title "Kiddie Pool of Baby Blood" mostly because I thought it was in poor taste. The lyrics, though, brought to mind the tragic nature of violence in America.

This is a strong release, one I highly recommend to fans of sludge-inspired, punk-infused, heavy metal.

Track Listing:
1. City of God
2. Sickening Rebellion
3. Chaotic Obliteration
4. Kiddie Pool of Baby Blood
5. Vessels / Vassals
6. Fetal Attraction
7. Tomb Cruise
8. Slave by Force
9. Abduction Cruiser
10. Morbid Angle
11. WWDHD

Added: October 31st 2012
Reviewer: Carl Sederholm
Score:
Related Link: Band Myspace Page
Hits: 2393
Language: english

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