Soup
wrote this:
Here's one I wasn't expecting! The new Outlaw Order album, Dragging Down the Enforcer, came out yesterday, but I just got it in the mail from Season of Mist today. Outlaw Order (abbreviated 00%) is a side project in the loosest sense of the word. Eyehategod guitarist, Jimmy Bower was busy playing drums in Down, and the rest of the band, all being on probation (in fact, since their first 7”, Legalize Crime, their original bassist went to prison), decided to play up the “outlaw” theme with this band. This time, bassist, Marc Schultz has been replaced (for obvious reasons), and really, they don't sound any worse for it because Justin Grisoli (also the only guy in the band who's never been in Eyehategod) does a damn fine job filling his shoes.
After a “declaration of a state of war,” the band is out the gates like a raging drunken bull. “Relive the Crime” is a really awesome track with some good sludge going on. Stoned, off-time playing, with drunken, almost punk rock vocals. I guess I'm stating the obvious when I say it sounds a hell of a lot like Eyehategod. A stoned drum-based dirge opens “Safety Off.” Slowly, the bass starts coming in, followed by buzzsaw guitars. They speed up into Sabbathy riffing with some angry drunken vocals. “Double Barrel Solves Everything” sounds like a hardcore song (in fact, I keep thinking it sounds sort of like a Minor Threat song, ironically, but I can't put my finger on which one). Pissed off vocals, economical, brutal guitar playing and drumming, and a nice sludgy bass assault make this track for me. “Alcohol Tobacco Firearms” starts out sounding a little like Sleep, and then throws that out to go into full-on old-school hardcore territory with the most speed displayed so far on the album. They stay fast and heavy for “Mercy Shot,” which has a nice crusty edge to it that reminds me a little bit of Asbestosdeath or Nausea. “Narco-Terrorists” has some really Sabbathy lead guitar going on. “Siege Mentality” goes even farther into that territory. More of the track is instrumental than not. Crushingly heavy, too! “Walking Papers” has a really cool ascending and descending lead guitar. You can smell the whiskey coming off of it. The last real song, the title track, has this cool juxtaposition of slow vocals and fast instrumentals. The drumming in particular is brutal as all hell.
This is a really solid album. I'd recommend it for fans of Down, Superjoint Ritual, Eyehategod, Asbestosdeath, Sleep, Electric Wizard... basically anyone who takes their metal slow and heavy. These guys only have one upcoming show scheduled. They're playing the Howlin' Wolf's “Raise the Dead” Festival in New Orleans. Maybe they can't leave town due to their probation? I don't know, but if you're in the area, check it out! Since their official website appears to be no longer owned by the band, more info can be found at their MySpace page.
