Stepping away from music for a decade was kind of a shocking move for Job for a Cowboy to make. The influential yet polarizing Arizona-bred outfit made a transition to a progressive tech death metal sound with their 2014 record Sun Eater that caught both fans and non-fans alike off-guard and it resulted in the most acclaimed release of their career. While electing to not immediately build off Sun Eater's momentum may've hurt their wallets, it didn't damage their art at all. Their long-awaited comeback release Moon Healer is another triumph that solidifies their standing as a really gifted "serious" extreme metal act that has officially closed the book on their deathcore past.
Moon Healer doesn't follow Sun Eater down the path of inspired musical reinvention, which inherently makes it slightly less exciting to listen to since it's unable to conjure up the euphoric feeling of pleasant surprise. Instead, it's more of a refinement of and expansion on Sun Eater's core sound that marries the ethereal and atmospheric with the visceral and brutal. Given its more methodical pacing and longer forays into audible bass driven spiraling voids of gloom, it effectively serves as the sadder, more misanthropic cousin to its predecessor.
While fans of JFAC's more straightforward heavy stuff will likely be let down by its diminished presence here, the slower pacing allows the compositions more time to breathe and that really allows the brilliance of the songwriting to be on full display. The vivid textures they're able to create through their dynamic riffage and inventive rhythm section creates this gripping atmosphere that completely transports the listener into its complex world of diminishing sanity, psychedelic drug abuse and moral decay. Whether its creeping dread, explosive rage or a brief moment of solace, the feelings they're trying to express are carefully considered and delivered with urgency and impact throughout. This kind of dedication to creating richly detailed worlds in music that convey a range of emotions isn't all that common in the world of metal and it's even rarer that it's pulled off as beautifully as it is on Moon Healer.
Being able to knock the rust off after roughly 10 straight years of inactivity with such a strong, confident piece of work is pretty remarkable and speaks to the strength of the strong ensemble of like-minded talent vocalist/sole founding member Jonny Davy has assembled (guitarists Tony Sannicandro and Al Glassman, bassist Nick Schendzielos) after being plagued by constant member changes in the years immediately following Doom (they still haven't hired a drummer to replace Jon Rice-who exited in 2013, so Davy tapped his old friend/previous side project collaborator Navene Koperweis to sit behind the kit for the Moon Healer sessions). Whatever Job for a Cowboy does next or however long it takes for it to materialize will continue to be irrelevant as long as they continue to execute everything they do with the level of precision and passion that's found on both of their most recent releases.
Grade: B+Favorite Tracks:
1.The Sun Gave Me Ashes So I Sought Out the Moon
2.The Agony Seeping Storm
3.Grinding Wheels of Ophanim
No comments:
Post a Comment