The Spectre Beneath
– The Downfall Of Judith King
The Spectre Beneath
consists of L Lockser (Vocals), Pete ‘Paz’ Worrall
(Guitar/Bass/Piano), and Consta Taylor (drums – Bleak Exist with
Paz). All songs were written by ‘Paz’ except one, and all were
produced by said ‘Paz’. I have no other supporting PR bumfery
that usually accompanies an album release.
However I do know
Pete Worrall, not that well, but enough to know he is a talented
writer (check out his novels), an extremely good guitarist (other
bands/projects include Bleak Exist and also Plague And The Decay),
and lover of greyhounds! Also he accompanies another friend of mine,
‘Hedgy’ on the ‘Pictures, Noise and Words’ YouTube channel
(Pete’s the one on the left).
I was asked by Pete
if I’d review this, which is a bit weird, because if you could
compile a Venn diagram of mine and Pete’s musical tastes, about 4
bands would cross over! Generally, we are miles apart, possibly even
planets apart. He is a braver man than me.
So, what of ‘The
Downfall Of Judith King’? With a title like that, you know its a
concept album of some description. I’m crap at explaining albums,
so we’ll get straight to the melody….
What happens if you
combine the musical melody of a singer like Den Adel, progressive
metalness of Devin Townsend, Symphony X, and the riffage of
Biomechanical? Well the answer wholeheartedly is ‘There Are Cameras
In the Dolls’. The guitar playing is brutal (in a good way), so
much so, I had to take the volume down just to concentrate and listen
to what my ears were taking in. The riffs are fast and frenetic, and
when combined with Taylor’s drumming its multiplies the rhythmic
assault. I think the guy has 4 legs based on the bass drum beats
coming through. The contrast of L Lockers vocals cuts through the
guitar and drums like a knife through butter. It makes for one hell
of an opening track.
‘Teach Yourself
Guitar (Step 2)’ follows on in the same path. If you’ve got a
good formula why rewrite the rule book. Bonus for me? No grunting,
well not yet anyway. ‘As The Crows Peck At Your Bones’ ramps up
the quality a notch. At this point I’m really liking the vocals of
L Lockser, and the rest isn’t too shabby either. The first chance
to draw breath comes with the title track, ‘The Downfall Of Judith
King’ and acoustic opening, before a more ‘traditional’ rock
song ensues. I’ve enjoyed the pace of the album so far, but this is
a song that defines The Spectre Beneath for me, and has a very
‘Heaven and Hell’ Black Sabbath bass line running through it for
the bridge sections. Six minutes in I half expect Lockser to wail
‘Sing me a song, youre a singer...’. Its by far and wide my
favourite song on the album. Mainly because it falls into the Venn
diagram section I mentioned earlier. I love this song. All Pete needs
to do now, is grow that handlebar moustache!!
‘Mrs Lovett’s
Pies’ is another assault on the senses. I don’t know how many BPM
we are up to, but lets settle for ‘its lots’. The guitar playing
isn’t overpowering in any way, its riffs just come at you very
thick and very, very fast. ‘Fragmented’ goes back to the less
frenetic pace, and for me its where this album shines. The solo is
blisteringly good. The first third of ‘The Plotting Of Judith King’
reminds me of a great rock/prog band called Tilt, in this instance a
song called ‘Long Gone’ and in my books, this is high praise
indeed. Info the final stretch we get the The Abduction and The
Questioning Of Olivia Soames’ (2 songs). They introduce a dramatic
effect to proceedings, culminating in the powerhouse ‘Questioning
Of...’ where ‘Paz’ and the guys throw the proverbial sink at
you. If Arjen Lucassen, Michael Romeo and Charlotte Wessels had a
threesome, then ‘The Questioning Of Olivia Soames’ is the
outcome of such a convergence.
For a bloke whose
musical tastes range from the likes of Dokken, to Journey and Alter
Bridge, ‘The Downfall Of Judith King’ has been a walk out of my
usual comfort zone. Its definitely an album of two sides, the first
half is fast, heavy and has more notes than you could care to count.
Then there’s the lighter side of the second half, still heavy, but
not as frenetic, and its these songs for me where the album resonates
the most. There are some bloody good songs on here, in particularly
the title track, ‘Fragmented and the latter section. Its a mighty
impressive debut and I really look forward to what these guys do
next.
Play this album
loud, extremely loud. Theres just no other way to.
A very solid 8/10
Review by Paul Chesworth
The Spectre Beneath -
Pete ‘Paz’
Worrall – Guitars / Bass / Piano
L Lockser – Vocals
Consta Taylor - Drums
Luke C.M. - guitar
solos on ‘Teach Yourself Guitar (Step 2)’ / ‘As The Crows Peck
At Your Bones’ / Mrs Lovetts Pies
Produced by Pete
Worrall
Mixed and mastered
by Joho Kilponen, Kilproduction Audio
Tracklisting -
There Are Cameras In
The Dolls
Teach Yourself
Guitar – Step 2
As The Crows Peck At
Your Bones
The Downfall Of
Judith King
Mrs Lovetts Pies
Fragmented
The Birth Of Judith
King
The Plotting Of
Judith King
The Abduction Of
Olivia Soames
The Questioning Of
Olivia Soames
Released Friday 27th
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