PALLBEARER - 2010 DEMO (2010)

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"We uploaded a full 320k version of the demo for you guys. Doom Onward!" (Pallbearer)

"Pallbearer from Little Rock Arknasas are going to be one of the next big bands of US Doom Metal, don't confused them with the second rate Black Metal band of the same name, this Pallbearer are the real deal. Traditional Doom Metal with a healthy side portion of good old Southern Sludge who have are preparing to unleashed their debut full length album which is being released by the exceptional Shadow Kingdom Records label. The sound on this three track demo is huge and overpowering beginning with the distorted bass line starting off the first track "The Legend" to the atmospheric plodding doom-fest which is the final track "Gloomy Sunday" (a Billie Holiday cover). What makes "The Legend" such a monumental track is the brilliant and tasteful musicianship which is played with a sense of high melody and atmosphere but its also the vocals of guitarist Brett Campbell who has the classic metal lungs. The vocals do have a lower register Rob Halford kind of ambiance which is perfect for dramatic Doom Metal craftsmanship. Guitars are heavy on the fuzz without sounding too overblown or distorted so they still maintain high melody while remaining intensely heavy. Over the course of 8 wonderful minutes, "The Legend" holds your attention with layers of guitars, melodic solo work and a vibe that is tight and relaxed in a hazy kind of atmosphere.

"Devoid Of Redemption" is slightly faster but still slow if that makes any sense at all but it plods along with less emphasis on fuzz and more focus on pure crunch. This track has more of a spacey, psychedelic feeling with the vocals turned up a notch higher in the mix giving the sound a cosmic feeling. If the opener "The Legend" is pure Trad-Doom, then i guess you would give "Devoid Of Redemption" the Stoner-Doom tag, it is closer to the sound of Stonehelm, Electric Wizard and Sleep than the other two tracks overall but equally as sonically punishing. Again the musicianship shines throughout especially in the solo section at around 6 minutes, the sound of the wailing, slightly tortured solo is short but majestic. At over 9 minutes its a long, rambling affair but stands out as being just as strong as the other two doom work-outs on this demo.

The third track and the most interesting from a musical point of view is the cover of Billie Holiday's "Gloomy Sunday". I have always thought of Holiday of being pure doom, some of Billie's songs were so dark that they have always been prefect material for a Doom Metal band to cover. Finally a band has seen the light and done a version of "Gloomy Sunday", for this i worship your imagination and taste. Of course trying to capture the true essence of this song is a challenge and no one will ever do it like the original as no one can possibly give it the emotion it deserves, in the case of "Gloomy Sunday" only the original artist will ever be able to do that. Songs like this are like sacred pieces of work but Pallbearer do a damn fine job here. The cover version works through the powerful performance of the vocalist once again but also the emotional guitar work which compliments those vocals perfectly. A great track but the weakest track out of the three tunes on the Pallbearer demo, they are much better at sticking to their own material in my opinion but i give them many kudos for attempting such a song.

Being just a demo and a relatively short one at that, its just a teaser for whats to come but these tracks have got me real excited about the future album. Special mention must also go to the production which is outstanding for a demo, wonderfully thick, warm and rich sounds from all instruments and the outstanding clarity and emotional precision from the vocals makes this demo a "no-brainer". You can download this demo from their homepage, do it as the sound you get on the Myspace site doesn't do it justice. You must check this band out now. 9/10" (Doommantia)

Pallbearer website