3 Inches of Blood - Here Waits Thy Doom 3.5/5

01. Battles And Brotherhood 04:47 02. Rock In Hell 04:56 03. Silent Killer 04:13 04. Fierce Defender 05:16 05. Preacher’s Daughter 06:48 06. Call Of The Hammer 02:59 07. Snake Fighter 03:19 08. At The Foot Of The Great Glacier 03:17 09. All Of Them Witches 06:43 10. 12:34 01:45 11. Execution Tank 07:33

Things have changed considerably in the world of 3IOB since their last release, 2007’s Fire Up The Blades. That year saw vocalist Jamie Hooper, the only remaining founding band member, take a “hiatus” on doctor’s orders; he was told that if he continued his screaming vocal style, he could lose his voice - permanently. Another blow came when the band were forced to fire drummer Alexei Rodruigez after he got in a fight with Saxon drummer Nigel Glockler at the UK’s Hard Rock Hell festival. Rodruigez would have been unable to drum on the rest of the tour regardless, as his elbow was broken while he received a heavy beating from security guards. However, the Canadians refused to be fazed or slowed down by these setbacks, and after drafting in Sound of the Swarm drummer Ash Pearson and allocating screaming duties to guitarist Justin Hagberg, they got back into the studio to record new album Here Waits Thy Doom.

To a certain extent, you always know roughly what you’re getting with a 3 Inches Of Blood album. They first forced themselves into the metal world’s consciousness with “Deadly Sinners” on the Advance and Vanquish album in 2004, a song so dedicated to the defence of heavy metal (“enemies of metal, your death is our reward! Triumphant victory, when we bring the steel to liiiiiife!”) that many actually thought it was a parody, some kind of joke. However, it soon became clear that 3IOB were deadly serious, as they churned out material trying to emulate the style and success of Deadly Sinners. They were in danger of becoming a one-trick pony, admittedly with quite a good trick, but one you could easily tire of even by the end of a support set. I know when I saw them live, pretty much all of us were just waiting for that one song - it was like going to see Europe, or MC Hammer. And on this new effort, at first you’d be tempted to think that it’s just more of the same from 3IOB - but after a few listens you start to notice some effort to change things up.

Listening to Here Waits Thy Doom, you always get the feeling that guitarists Hagberg and Shane Clark really, really wish they were in Iron Maiden. Which is by no means a bad thing, as it gives them a very high standard to live up to - and indeed, don’t we ALL wish we were in Iron Maiden from time to time? Their twin duelling-guitar style is obviously heavily inspired by NWOBHM bands such as Maiden - in particular the solo and bridge in “Silent Killer” could easily be Dave Murray and Adrian Smith letting rip. The signature galloping riff which Steve Harris basically invented is also in evidence on several tracks, most noticeably on “Fierce Defender”, and at times you start to wonder if they aren’t taking their love of Maiden a little too far. While it’s by no means a bad thing to take inspiration from one of the greatest bands of all time, there are plenty of Maiden cover bands out there - but one thing sets this album apart from the herd of Maiden wannabes. And that’s Cam Pipes.

Cam Pipes is the only person to have featured on all of 3 Inches of Blood’s albums to date, and it’s his vocal style which is the truly memorable, individual thing about their music. His squealing, wailing style is reminiscent of Rob Halford being channelled through some kind of large bird of prey - it’s instantly recognisable. It’s the vital ingredient that makes 3IOB interesting to listen to. They’ve covered remarkably well for the loss of Jamie Hooper, as Hagberg does a sterling job standing in for him on the screamier vocals, and at times you almost wouldn’t notice he was gone. Sorry, Jamie. It’s interesting that they decided not to bring in another dedicated vocalist to cover for him, and it perhaps smacks of a band not wanting to undergo too much change at once; that said, there is noticeable effort to evolve, musically.

Yes, most things about this album are instantly recognisable as 3IOB, such as the song titles; “Snake Fighter”, “All Of Them Witches” and “Battles & Brotherhood” fit in perfectly with the spirit of past classics like “Destroy the Orcs” and “Goat Rider’s Horde”. Much of the musical style is much the same as usual, too, and at first you’d almost be tempted to call it predictable; however there are aspects in which 3IOB have mixed things up on this album. There are much longer instrumental interludes, including one completely instrumental track, “12:34“ (it‘s also acoustic!), and the songs on average are longer than on previous albums. Prior to HWTD, 3IOB’s longest song was five and a half minutes long. Here, you can find several efforts that best that, and closing track “Execution Tank” clocks in over seven and a half minutes long. You get the feeling that a bit more work has been put into these songs, like the band have decided they can do better than just bashing out three-minute anthems with stereotypical power-metal lyrics. Indeed, with “Preachers Daughter” the band even attempt a mid-tempo, almost ballad-y number, or at least the closest 3IOB equivalent. In many ways, it’s the same fare as served on the previous three albums, but at the same time there’s just something…different. To return to an earlier comparison, it’s a bit like Maiden after Bruce and Adrian returned in 1999 - still instantly recognisable, but different at the same time. Here Waits Thy Doom is not Brave New World, but it at least makes an effort to keep the band from stagnating, churning out endless attempts to recreate “Deadly Sinners”.

The production on Here Waits Thy Doom goes a long way to differentiate it from previous efforts, too. The tone, particularly in the guitars, isn’t nearly as harsh - while previously it was dark and heavy, there’s something a little lighter and more melodic on this record. It has more in common with the heavy-rock style of Valient Thorr than the more thrashy tone of its predecessors. All of this suddenly makes sense when you remember that Fire Up The Blades was produced by Joey Jordison of Slipknot fame, while HWTD producer Jack Endino is more associated with the 90s Seattle grunge scene. To underline how clear the change it is, I’d like to point out that I’d honestly typed out that Valient Thorr connection before I’d even discovered that Endino actually produced their last album, Immortalizer.

All in all, I’d say that Here Waits Thy Doom is an important step forward for 3 Inches Of Blood. Admittedly, it’s probably not as good as Advance and Vanquish, but it represents the first time the band have truly strived to step out of the shadows of that album, and indeed “Deadly Sinners”. It’s a solid effort and a good listen, if at times a little derivative and lacking in originality. What’s more significant is where the band go from here - if they continue this trend, allowing a bit more innovation, they could aspire to greater things. No longer just “that Deadly Sinners band”, the metal MC Hammer, but a real force in the modern metal scene.

Here Waits Thy Doom is available to buy or download at play.com

Genre : Heavy / Power / Thrash Metal

Article by Phil Sim