Volbeat: Servant of the Mind

Just two years since we have heard the last release from Volbeat, they are back with their eighth and mammoth effort Servant of the Mind, and let me tell you the Danes are not here to mess around this time - this is hard, heavy, furious and this is one to really turn up a notch or two without any holding back. Packed with pristine cleverness, a harsh attitude and the chunky meaty riffs we crave, Poulsen and the guys have parted ways with the more mellow thematic sounds of their Seventh outing Rewind, Replay, Rebound to awesomely deliver a brutally bruising offering in the year of 2021 with a superior passion for Heavy Metal.

The four piece consisting of Michael Poulsen (ex-Dominus) on guitar and vocal duties, Rob Caggiano (ex-Anthrax, ex-The Damned Things) on the axe slaying too, Jon Larsen (ex-Infernal Death) behind the depths of the kit, and finally, Kaspar Boye Larsen (ex-Killaman, ex-The Kandidate) on the thick string bass are all definitely on the finest form they ever have been and really deserve a whole lot of credit from the launch of this efficient release.

In the whole bulk of things, there is so much to talk about on this record but I will try my nvery best to keep it short and sweet. Going forth, tracks like the phenomenal 'The Sacred Stones' has a Ghost and Black Sabbath's 'Heaven and Hell' feel to it that just sits perfectly amongst Volbeat's back catalogue, and moreover, the crushing riffage of 'Shotgun Blues' just wants you headbang crazily without no give - it is actually that insane and absolutely mind-blowing.

With more highlights to discuss, coming forward is a warmly welcomed single in the name of 'Wait A Minute My Girl' that is a catchy Volbeat party anthem arising from the Danish crew and it will definitely be a live favourite in the aspects of the future I am definitely sure of that.

Additionally, the Volbeat does The Shadows entry 'Step Into Light' is purely magnificent and I would highly recommend taking the time to listen to this number with immediate effect as it is true gold and it ia so enjoyable to play as loud as possible in your car or headphones. Other unique entries arise in the shape of the epic opener 'Temple of Ekur' that naturally crushes and the dark dingy blues smothered monster 'The Devil Rages On' that really make this album a true winner for me throughout its entire duration.

If you buy the deluxe version you are treated to some really unique cover songs, including the likes of The Cramps/Roy Orbison cover of 'Domino' that comes off or sounds like The Clash or The Vapours to me strangely enough, and furthermore, we have a version of Wolfbrigade's Return to None and to just to top it off we have a cover of Metallica's leviathan 'Don't Tread On Me' that both essentially crop up on the deluxe output too to effectively add to the mixture of things to make this a banger of a release.

All inclusively, I would highly recommend Servant of the Mind to any Hard Rock or Heavy Metal fanatic as this is a better release than what came prior to it, even though I loved the most recent album, however this takes it up to another superior level and I can assure I will be playing this contemporary collection of Volbeat tunes for a very long period to come - I have no inch of doubt about that in my mind.

Track List:
1. Temple of Ekur
2. Wait A Minute My Girl
3. The Sacred Stones
4. Shotgun Blues
5. The Devil Rages On
6. Say No More
7. Heaven's Descent
8. Dagen For
9. The Passenger
10. Step Into Light
11. Becoming
12. Mindlock
13. Lasse's Brigatta
14. Return to None (Wolfbrigade Cover)
15. Domino (The Cramps/Roy Orbison Cover)
16. Shotgun Blues (Remix - Ft. Dave Matrise)
17. Dogen For (Michael Vox Version)
18. Don't Tread on Me (Metallica Cover)

Added: December 12th 2021
Reviewer: James Mannion
Score:
Related Link: Band Website
Hits: 1191
Language: english

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