BLESSING THE HOGS


"The Twelve Gauge Solution" (Goodfellow Records; 2005)

Reviewed by Ray Van Horn Jr.

Blessing the Hogs is about as cool a band name as Alabama Thunderpussy , The Slits or Cocksparrer. The problem with Blessing the Hogs isn't that they're not heavy, nor is it that Blessing the Hogs aren't brutal. They're both of those things, most assuredly. The problem with Blessing the Hogs is that "The Twelve Gauge Solution" is one of the most redundant albums you'll come across this year. Milking a handful of the same repetitive hardcore and aggro metal elements for all they're worth, "The Twelve Gauge Solution" clobbers its listeners with assertive but archetypical chugs, swamp stomps and skullcrushing mayhem that is arranged in the same manner throughout the majority of the album. In other words, it's a monotonous blast upside the head that may leave you dull midway through. 

On occasion Blessing the Hogs break their formulaic molds, particularly on the randomized "18 Rabbit" and a doable rendition of Quicksand's "Fazer," which deserves megahails as Quicksand is one of the most underappreciated bands in hard music of all-time. Also notable is a pretty fly cover of The Melvins' "Hog Leg."

Further extra credit to Blessing the Hogs for some clever song titles like "Pretard," "Let's Play Doctor...Kervorkian," "Son of Sanford" and "40 Drops of Marrow." The titles are as bombastic and edgy as the bases to Blessing the Hogs' angry blasts of hardcore retribution. Despite their repetitiveness, Blessing the Hogs will keep you paying attention lyrically, particularly with the blatant heresy on songs like "Pretard" and "Botched Messiah." These guys obviously operate under some pissed-off diatribes.

What all of this means is that if you're digging what Blessing the Hogs has to offer, "The Twelve Gauge Solution" will give you a hearty dose of aggression to keep you grinding and banging in tandem, and I certainly wish you well with it. Perhaps my problem personally was that given this band's hype, I was expecting another Beaten Back to Pure, which would've been just the blessing I was looking for.

For more information, check out www.blessingthehogs.com


Rating Guide:

A classic. This record will kick your ass.

Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.

So-so. You've heard better.

Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.

Self explanatory. Just the sight of the cover makes you wanna hurl.


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Copyright © 2005 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights reserved.
Revised: 19 Mar 2024 18:22:12 -0500.