Place Of Skulls - The Black Is Never Far

*=Staff's pick	Prisoners Creed* Sense Of Divinity* Darkest Hour* Interlude Apart From Me* The Black Is Never Far We The Unrighteous Interlude Masters Of Jest Interlude Lookin For A Reason Relentless* Changed Heart

Genre	Doom/Hard Rock	Victor Griffin	Vocals
Tracks	13	Victor Griffin	Guitar
Runningtime	42 Min.	-	Guitar
Label	Exile On Mainstream	Dennis Cornelius	Bass
Release	20 Mar. 2006	Tim Tomaselli	Drums
Country	USA	-	Keyboards
Similar artists	Black Sabbath, Black Label Society, Cathedral

Tennessee's finest and heaviest band Place Of Skulls is back with a brand new fine work entitled The Black Is Never Far and this time it is the german label Exile On Mainstream Records that will bring on the heavy and darkened groove that Place Of Skulls offer with the bands' engine, heart and lunges Victor Griffin on guitar and vocals.

The Black Is Never Far is a very diverse album that has a lot to offer, I think. Place Of Skulls shows a very wide spectre over all the classic doom structures and everything is very well arranged with a touch of hard rock. It doesn't matter how well a band like Black Sabbath have composed their material during all those years. Their early, and in my ears best, material was a bit monotone and perhaps not always filled with surprises. With Place Of Skull it's more like they are misfits of their time. They are thirty years after their music. The fine thing with this is that they have had a chance to pick up influences over all the years that work supreme together with the classical doom package. The result is a band with very good depths, incredible nice guitar melodies and always with that fluffy cool guitar, bass and drum sound. A sound that's almost been erased in the modern hi-tech jungle of today. All these aspects can be laid to the incoming account and to this also the magnificent vocals from Victor Griffin. Clean vocals with loads of power that fit and gives a kick to all these acoustic parts.

The Black Is Never Far holds thirteen songs if you include these interludes that seem to pop up here and there. Of course, all songs aren't excellent, and this has to be added to the outgoing account. There are some really good ones and these are superb times. But there are some songs that flip out to much, I think It is always cool with songs that have been born from jamming but it doesn't have to sound as impulsive as it does on some tracks in the end of this album. Well recommended songs on The Black Is Never Far must be Prisoners Creed, Sense Of Divinity, Apart From Me and the awesome Relentless. A very good album that offers more than traditional doom.

Production	Vocals	Compositions
7	9	8

Summary
8 chalices of 10 - Tim