Scythe - Beware the Scythe

In a way, Scythe can be looked at as a sort of continuation of Chicago's Usurper as Scythe is the brainchild of Scythe. Duh.

The music on this album is akin to that which appeared on the last few Usurper albums. I actually heard a faint bit of the Usurper sound of old as well, circa 'Diabolosis'/'Skeletal Season', though the songs here are a bit more punchy and active whereas the material on those albums was significantly gloomier and by default, heavier. That's not to say that 'Beware the Scythe' is a limp wristed wimp fest, by any stretch. On the contrary, there is definitely a chromatic sheen about this release that puts it above much of what I've heard in the last few years. 

The fact that Rick (Scythe) Sprague has been doing this since the 80's, starting with the insanely brutal, The Dead Youth, and then moving on to form Usurper with much of the same cast and crew, should put most of you at ease in regards to this Man's credentials.

The music found on this album is fairly well rounded in the sense that it covers just about every known genre. Black metal, doom metal, thrash metal and death metal are all beaten into submission and tempered to produce a sword more than worthy of battle. Though I prefer the gloomy brutality of The Dead Youth over everything Rick has done since, I would have to say that the early Usurper stuff is pretty damn good in its own right and this album, again, while not carrying with it the weight of ages past, is still a hell of a lot better than the last few albums Usurper released. I guess Rick needed that time away to get things back on track and rolling onward.

If bottom heavy blackened thrash is your thing, then by all means, show your support and vamp a copy of this.