Urne – Serpent & Spirit
Release Date: 25th June 2021
Label: Candlelight
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Genre: Metal, Sludge.
FFO: Mastodon, early Metallica.
Review By: Graeme Humphrey
I’ll be honest, there’s always a little bit of worry for me when I see bands listing Metallica as an influence or as an artist they sound similar to on a press release (I think we all remember The Crusade…). So, listing Metallica and Alice in Chains as influences had me expecting a very particular sound with Urne. And that then went completely out the window as soon as I hit play! Serpent & Spirit sounds significantly darker and bleaker than I anticipated, blending a good mesh of styles and seemingly leaning more on the likes of Mastodon or even High on Fire for an influence on their sound than you may have been led to believe.
Formed by ex-Hang the Bastard members Joe Nally and Angus Neyra, there is a real emphasis put on the importance of big, heavy riffs in the music of Urne. And the opening title track doesn’t disappoint on that front. Knowing when to use space to add to the force of a riff, the track flows from a majestic harmonised guitar intro into a mega riff that will have you scrunching your face in approval. The same can be said for the opening of The Palace of Devils and Wolves, which will pull you in with its huge groove and refuse to let go for the full five minute run-time. If you like down-tuned, down-picked riffs, we’re off to a great start!
Urne isn’t just all about that chugging style, though. Desolate Heart takes a decidedly thrashy turn with a killer opening riff and almost blast beat drumming, which then settles right back into that big groove that seems to be the band’s comfort zone. The same can be said for Envy the Dead, which plays with tempo during the verse and then delivers a chorus that’s reminiscent of early Zakk Wylde albeit less “southern” sounding.
But clocking in at 2:35 long, Envy the Dead is by far the outlier on the album with most other songs on the album coming in anywhere between 6 minutes and 8 minutes long. I’m prepared to admit that this is personal taste, but I do find that some of the album drags to hit these times when streamlining some of the sections could have done wonders for the impact of the album. But maybe that’s just because I’m more of a hardcore guy than a metal guy.
Long run-times aside, though, there is plenty on Serpent & Spirit to get your teeth into. It’s evident that the band has approached the writing here as writing a cohesive album rather than just a collection of riffs (although there is no shortage of riffs!) and that shines through with how the album ebbs and flows and plays with dynamics. Urne takes that sludgy aggression of Remission-era Mastodon, throws in a little thrash and classic metal and pulls together an album that makes you want to bang your head and punch people in the pit. And that’s a success in my book.
(3.5 / 5)
