HOWL - Bloodlines

Three years after their debut, plagued by line-up changes, Howl somehow finds the strength and returns with a new studio album with a new line-up. Titled Bloodlines, the records reveals a more direct, more abrasive Howl, a Howl on steroids if I may say so. Keeping the stoner core and the melodic side of the first release, Howl have somehow managed to pace themselves to keep Bloodlines from becoming commonplace, insignificant and uninspired. It is true, the band’s music is not overflowing with originality or fantastic brilliance, but they do show that it is possible to have that modicum of personality to help you rise above the pack and become meaningful for your genre. Do not get too excited. If you’re looking for the new Metallica or the new Mastodon or who knows what other band that making waves, this is not the place. No, and by the way their music sounds, I don’t think they were aiming for that. What’s important is that Howl managed to give a different record with Bloodlines than their debut album - Full of Hell. 

What I liked most on this material is how Howl managed to distance themselves even more from what Mastodon were trying on their first records (an approach they somehow had on Full of Hell) and give their music a more personal tone. However, I’m certain that Howl could and will do more in the future, thinking of songs such as Attrition, Midnight Eyes, With a Blade or Embrace Your Nerve: they sound good, but could sound better. And since I mentioned these four songs, they were not chosen at random or to single them out, but because they have really good parts that unfortunately underutilized. As I have said on other occasions, at the risk of repeating myself, I’d say that most of the times you don’t need to sound brutal or try to sound brutal in order to have a heavy sound. 

I would like to end by saying that there are numerous interesting influences in the music of Howl, and this is not bad, because, let’s be serious, to sound original in 2013 is, if not impossible, pretty damn hard. If you like stoner/sludge with little Swedish metal insertions, Howl is exactly what you’ve been looking for.

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