The Sword, Gods Of Earth

The Sword
Gods Of The Earth
Kemado
*** (3.5/5.0)

    The Sword is a classic case of "talking the talk." Sh-t, these dudes kick out some of the heaviest riffs I've heard in ages, and if you were to listen to their albums and never catch them live, you'd simply be left imagining Orcs, glowing-eyed wolves, and foreboding, snow-covered mountaintops.

    But… big "but" right here: The Sword, how do I put this, somehow still manage to come across as kids (dilettantes?) who've discovered a chemistry set and believe themselves to be alchemists. They have a handle on what they're doing, though, so you can't really fault them. I just wish it were High On Fire that made it big instead. Whereas The Sword dudes chug out epic riff after riff while standing stone-still on stage, Matt Pike is up there on stage, night after night, scaring the sh-t out of people and he probably still has a tough time paying rent.

    Basically this: One time when The Sword was playing a show my friend Wombat got all riled up and hucked a beer. The Sword stopped playing. Now I ask you, What Would Pike Do? Probably huck one right back and get on with it. But still, Gods Of The Earth talks the talk fairly fluently.—Andreas Trolf