Take equal parts Slayer, Celtic Frost, The Melvins, and Mastodon, and you have Lair of the Minotaur, who have created quite the rampaging juggernaut on their third release The Ultimate Destroyer. This intense 38-minute marathon into doom, death, hardcore, and thrash metal debauchery covers a lot of ground, and the pulverizing riffs and maniacal drum work is as intimidating as it is jaw dropping. Guitar sludge aplenty comes from the hands of Steven Rathbone, who also delivers the carnage from a vocal standpoint, while the rhythm team of drummer Larry Herweg and bassist Donald James Barraca bash their instruments with reckless abandon. The molten waves of feedback and distortion on such raging songs as "Grisly Hound of the Pit" and "Behead the Gorgon" effectively convey the lyrics which center on the dark side of Greek Mythology. If you like slower, doomier material, look no further than the massive dirge "Cannibal Massacre" or the behemoth sludge of "The Hydra Coils Upon This Wicked Mountain", sure to please fans of old Black Sabbath, Crowbar, or St. Vitus.
The essence of The Ultimate Destroyer lies in its power and bulldozing nature, making it one enjoyable metal album from these Pelican and 7,000 Dying Rats members. Lair of the Minotaur are quickly rising up the doom ranks thanks to this one.
Track Listing
1) Juggernaut of Metal
2) Behead the Gorgon
3) The Ultimate Destroyer
4) Horror
5) Grisly Hound of the Pit
6) Cannibal Massacre
7) Lord of Butchery
8) Engorged With Unborn Gore
9) The Hydra Coils Upon This Wicked Mountain
Printer Friendly Page
Send to a Friend
