DEATH PENALTY — Death Penalty (review)

DEATH PENALTY — Death Penalty album cover Album · 2014 · Heavy Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
5/5 ·
Nightfly
With the promise of a deal on Rise Above Records from former bandmate and Cathedral singer Lee Dorrian, after the demise of Cathedral guitarist Gaz Jennings set about forming Death Penalty, their name taken from the 1982 NWOBHM album from Witchfinder General. His first call was to former Belgium doom merchants’ Serpentcult vocalist Michelle Nocon. Also from Serpentcult came drummer Frederik Cosemans and completing the line-up on bass Raf Meukens of Bathesheba, which also features Michelle Nocon.

With the doom metal pedigree of the band members I was surprised to hear that their eponymous debut is an album much more in the traditional metal vein, reminding me very much of those 80’s albums where metal could be crushingly heavy but still have strong melodies. Of course any band featuring Jennings couldn’t fail to have some doom elements and so it is with Children Of The Night being more along the lines of my preconceptions, though it has to be said that the trad elements still show themselves. It’s a killer track but so is nearly everything else on this brilliant incendiary album. Nocon’s vocals are a revelation – one of the finest singers I’ve heard for some time, again harking back to that classic 80’s style of metal vocalist. She has the power and range to get her tonsils around anything thrown at her. The rhythm section is solid as a rock and Jennings has come up with some of his best riffs ever along with some great solos. The production is fantastic, this album was made for vinyl as the power coming from the grooves of my double clear copy demonstrates.

Since the release of this album in 2014 Jennings has also been involved in Lucifer but as that is essentially Johanna Sadonis’ baby I’d wager that this is where his future lies. I really hope so as this band is far too good to release one album and disappear. If I’d discovered it sooner it would have made my top 5 of 2014 such is the quality of these songs.
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