G/Z/R - ‘Ohmwork’ (Mayan/Sanctuary) Released 09/05/05

Claim by two defence witnesses...

May 17, 2005 by Michelle Evans

G/Z/R - ‘Ohmwork’ (Mayan/Sanctuary) Released 09/05/05

Terry ‘Geezer’ Butler has been living in the shadow of darkness for years. Ozzy, the Prince of Darkness that is, as Black Sabbath’s bassist. ‘Ohmwork’, the third solo album from Geezer’s side project G/Z/R was recorded in just 10 days as Geezer’s ‘homework’. Joined by vocalist Clark Brown, guitarist Pedro Howse and drummer Chad Smith, this album is an exciting prospect likely to warrant unfair comparisons to Sabbath.

Singer Clark has a powerful pair of lungs on him that lend themselves well to G/Z/R’s style of bad-ass metal. Opening track ‘Misfit’ charges out of the traps with all the explosive pace of a rabbit hungry greyhound. Followed quickly down the track by ‘Pardon My Depression’, a track that oozes the kind of tight writing and songsmanship honed over 35 years in the music business.

‘Pull The String’ has it all; relentless drums, edgy guitar and bass and thunderous vocals that shift with ease from melodic singing to shouting to a nu-metal style rap delivery. ‘Dogs Of Whore’ is another angry winner spitting its message out in five minutes of bile fuelled yelling.

Amongst some corkers are songs like the grungy ‘I Believe’, the nu-metal ‘Prisoner 103’ and the nondescript ‘Don’t You Know’ that are left limping up to the finish line that is the end of the album. Haunting mellow metal track, ‘Alone’ is not one of the best and would benefit from either being played at twice the speed or not at all.

This is not an album riding on the shirt tails of famous associations it impressively holds its own in a saturated genre. It certainly doesn’t feel like a band conceived by a 55 year old pursuing some lame vanity project. Although it is a solid album with some great tracks on, there’re not all winners but it’s still worth a listen.

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