At long last - some real heavy metal
Jim Moss | London | 01/09/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Orange Goblin are the definitive sound - and the physical embodiment - of what heavy metal should be. Sporting crushing Sabathian riffs and with more hooks than a strip of Velcro, the Big Black is the London band's third major label release and proves to be their most accomplished album to date. Kicking off with the excellent "Scorpionica", this album grabs you by the scruff of the neck and hurls you headlong into a wall of mind melting bass guitar and pounding drums, subtly shifting at times from neck wrenching metal to moments of sublime mellowness - as can be heard in "Hot Magic, Red Planet", "Cozmo Bozo" and, in particular, "You'll Never Get To The Moon In That". While the fast guitar work in "Turbo Effalunt (Elephant)", "Quincy The Pigboy" and "Alcofuel" picks up the pace of the album even further, the real highlight comes in the form of the awesomely powerful "King Of The Hornets" and "The Big Black" - where massive guitars and fantastic lyrics from gruff voiced Ben Ward abound. There's no trends being adopted here, no bandwagon being jumped on - just pure unrelenting sonic bombardment by the best metal band that the UK has produced since Motorhead. Play LOUD, play VERY LOUD. Oh and watch out for the drunken answerphone messages tagged onto the end of the album - hilarious."
Track Listings (11) - Disc #1