Lamb of God - Killadelphia

Genre metal Publisher Epic Records External Links Official Lamb of God Website Epic Records

At some point Lamb of God became the heir to Metallica and Pantera. With the world in need of a mainstream metal band that could draw the casual metal fan while not selling out and losing any of the old-school dedicated fans, Lamb of God have fallen nicely into the role.

Killadelphia is an October 2004 live document as to how this Richmond, Va., quintet has gotten to this point. A DVD version of this concert has been released as well.

The key is how they update metal's sound for the modern headbanger while sounding indebted to more classic metal acts. As mainstream metal has headed in more of a black metal direction, then that feeds right into Lamb of God's nihilistic strengths. A band like Avenged Sevenfold ran away from the possibility of being the metal torchbearer; Lamb of God embraces it.

Meanwhile, they definitely owe something to Pantera's sound: One can hear it in the mathematical riffage of guitarists Mark Morton and Will Adler. One can hear it in the double bass-drum pounding of Chris Adler. And one can absolutely hear it in the vocal intensity of singer Randy Blythe.

By October 2004, Lamb of God is already hailing the end of "nu-metal crap," as they say it on stage. For those metal fans late to the party, here's a career retrospective. "Laid to Rest" and "Hourglass," the twin monoliths from their essential 2004 album Ashes of the Wake, start the album, but they balance it out later with cuts from the remainder of their catalog, including 2000 debut New American Gospel.

As time has passed, the riffs have sharpened on record, which has helped their live assault. Combining the sophistication of the songwriting and the precision and focus of the intensity, Lamb of God have made relevant modern metal. Their timing couldn't have been better.