Brutal, honest, driven. This follow-up to Murder And The Motive takes the promise inherent in Those Damn Crows' debut, ratchets up the intensity 10-fold and positively rams home the qualities that made that record special.
Here we have titanic riffs and instantly memorable choruses in blissful harmony, kind of like a Welsh Alter Bridge or Shinedown.
With Colin Richardson and Andy Sneap producing there was no chance this was going to sound anything other than immense – Send The Reaper with its Metallica-sized riffing, Kingdom Of Dust, Go Get It, Devil In My Pocket, just take your pick and prepare to be flattened by the breathless momentum.
The orchestral, piano-led, emotionally draining Never Win provides some early respite, otherwise this is a master class in combining glittering arena-targeted hooks and crunching modern metal.
The energy levels are merciless and the groove is irresistible.
Difficult second album? Nope.
