Raging Speedhorn - How the Great Have Fallen

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Forest: Sold Out
Jul 5, 2003
5,154
13
38
40
Indiana
Raging Speedhorn – How the Great Have Fallen
SPV – SPV 80000792 – May 24th, 2005
By Jason Jordan

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After finishing How the Great Have Fallen, I was reminded of the Saturday Night Live mock-commercial in which Will Ferrell asks a grocer, “Can I have some more? A lot more?” So, as you may infer, Raging Speedhorn have recently put forth a solid, third effort that noticeably draws influences from sludge-proponents and metallers of lore such as Eyehategod and Black Sabbath respectively.

The grooves found on How the Great Have Fallen are simply tremendous. Look no further than “Oh How the Great Have Fallen” for proof of the preceding statement. Raging Speedhorn present a couple vocal styles on this record: one is essentially a throwback to Anselmo (Superjoint Ritual, ex-Pantera, ex-Down) and the other one prefers to be gruff, indomitable, and scant. Again, compositions like “Master of Disaster,” “How Much Can a Man Take,” and “Slay the Coward” are filled to the brim with captivating riffs and nod-worthy grooves. Sampling other tunes won’t yield exactly the same results, because the unmentioned opuses aren’t as bloodthirsty as their opponents. Still, How the Great Have Fallen retains many contenders for best song. And “Don’t Let the Bastards Grind You Down” slows the tempo to a barely-churning pace, which is how Raging Speedhorn chose to end the musical portion of the disc. Now, whatever you do, don’t turn the player off after the seven-minute closer vanishes; fast-forward to the 13:30 minute mark, and prepare to laugh uncontrollably.

Honestly, I tried delay premature judgment on this particular outing, but I just couldn’t help it. How the Great Have Fallen is a worthy follow-up to Raging Speedhorn’s previous albums and – while it’s not album of the year material – it should garner the feedback that the band so rightfully deserves. I guess swamps aren’t all concentrated in New Orleans, Louisiana.

8/10

Official Raging Speedhorn Website
Official SPV Website