The title track "The Mouths of Madness" reminds instantly of Black Sabbath classic "Killing Yourself to Live". Singer/keyboardist Theo Mindell echoes Ozzy, without feeling totally like a tribute band. The heavy psychedelic feel of the song is certainly unsettling. The drumming of Carter Kennedy is solid on the tune, but a tad too bombastic at times. Lead guitar by Mark Thomas Baker obviously reminds of Tony Iommi, especially his trademark 70s palette of sounds. A good opener. "Marching Dogs of War" is the band's answer to "War Pigs" and "Children of the Grave". I like the almost lo-fi feel of the song, and the album truly sounds like it could have been recorded in a dreary English recording studio in the early 1970s. Bass player Keith Nickel has Geezer Butler down pat, and plays in a very similar manner with wondrously "busy" bass-lines. Even the harmonica comes in before the solo, Orchid have really gone all out to replicate the sounds of vintage Sabbath. As a huge Sabbath fan, I love this rocking and heavy anti-military number. But, I can understand why some criticize the band as mere imitators, I mean this song and album border on plagiarism. However, the band gets closer to the Sabbath sound and feel than any other band I've heard so far.
"Silent One" opens with a massive riff that reminded me of "Into the Void" by Sabbath. Telling of the coming of Satan, I like how the band does vary in its subject matter. Like Sabbath before them, the band is certainly very focused on the occult and things that go bump in the night. A killer solo in the middle of the song is the highlight, as is the pretty good rhythm section of Nickel and Kennedy. You could easily mistake the instrumental section of the song for a Sabbath studio out-take, and that is not something I say lightly about bands, these guys are fuc&$$ serious about replicating that heavy, thick, and dank Sabbath sound. "Nomad" is the album's answer the mighty and untouchable "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" with a touch of "Snowblind". It is at this point I realize that all of the bands that have sought to imitate Sabbath over the years really have nothing on these guys, this is the real deal, at least in terms of coming so close to Sabbath that I got goosebumps. The song slows half-way through, and is gorgeous and introspective, before speeding up to break-neck speed again. Orchid take you on a roller-coaster of musicality, with tempos and lyrically motifs ranging from spectacular highs to crushing lows, much like Sabbath did before them. A great song, even if it is a pastiche of more than a couple Sabbath classics.
"Mountains of Steel" is the album's answer to my favorite Sabbath song of all time, the incredibly underrated "A National Acrobat". While not in the same league as "Acrobat", the song is pretty darn cool. The rubbery bass-lines, jazzy kit-bashing, and Iommian leads combine with Mindell's hypnotic voice and mystical lyrics to create a great homage. My pick for the best song on the album, a fantastic tribute that even features a jazzy interlude, that sounds directly from "Sabotage". "Leaving It All Behind" closely mirrors "After Forever" from Black Sabbath masterpiece "Master Of Reality", before warping into a song that sounds very close to Sabotage-era Sabbath. The song is insanely positive from a lyrical perspective, and the flowery lyrics reminded me of "Sabbra Cadabra" from "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath". The song is a bit slow at points and corny, and I found it to be the least exciting song on the album.
"Loving Hand of God" opens with some murky bass from Nickel, before some bluesy guitars come in. The most American-sounding song on the album, think a heavier version of The Black Keys, White Stripes, or even Rival Sons. A tale of vagrancy, a strict upbringing, and general misery, the song warps into a fast and dizzy Sabbath jam resembling both "The Wizard" and "Hand of Doom". Not a bad song at all, and it shows off the band's musical chops. "Wizard of War" reminds of "War Pigs" and "Paranoid", an almost punk-like song that is very fast. The song concerns a demonic overlord presiding over death and destruction. Not a bad song, but very unoriginal, even for this band. "See You On the Other Side" again sound very much like something off "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath". About death and confronting mortality, the song is pretty heavy, both musically and lyrically. A fairly long song, it features a quiet and contemplative acoustic section, that is very much like "Spiral Architect", also from "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath", as well as hints of that album's title track. Like a cold shower, Orchid lets loose for the end of the album with an all-out assault of classic metal and speeds up the song.
"The Mouths Of Madness" certainly lacks any form of originality. The album plays like a Black Sabbath playbook, and you will spend a great deal of your time with the album trying to figure out what Sabbath song each section of each song on this album sounds similar to. However, the band is phenomenally talented at paying tribute to Sabbath, and each song comes very close to the vibe and feel of that band. If you like Sabbath, you could do a lot worse than listen to this band. If you praise music for originality, Orchid may not be for you.
Rating-7.5/10
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