Jittery, jumpy riffs dominate “Señor Limpio”, another blistering blitz. Speaking of “My Grain”, it’s the most punk rock track, but even so it features a kickass bass solo! Other noteworthy tracks include the wah-wah inflected title track (Mike Dean on vocals).
“Mano de Mono”, another acoustic piece, is basically the front end of “Seven Days”, a mid-paced groove single. Later on, “#2121313”, an electric guitar piece, is joined directly onto “My Grain”. “Without Wings”, a dark acoustic guitar figure, leads into the heavy-as-fuck “Broken Man” exactly like a Sabbath song. Remember how a Black Sabbath album had key instrumental bits, usually introducing another song? That’s what COC do here. The aforementioned instrumentals are integral parts of the album. It has a vibe similar to “Outshined” by Soundgarden but more mournful. “Albatross” flies on the wings of a strong melody and heavy performance.
You can hear what Mike Dean brings to the table - a slinky, Geezer style of bass that provides subliminal melody. The multi-tracked vocal in the chorus (“Knock it down!”) is the perfect fit, but the Lizzy-ish guitar solos are an additional layer of perfection.Īnother key track, “Albatross” is too heavy to be a ballad so let’s call it a dirge. Drummer Reed Mullin has a spare groove, but he knows exactly when to accent it with some heavy hitting. The riff is outstanding, but the verse and chorus melodies slay. The song is a tour-de-force, a textbook example of all the right ingredients. He said he cannot heal that kind.”Ĭheck out the choppy riff on the single “Clean My Wounds”. John Custer’s crisp and chunky production brought out the metal side more than ever. This is one hell of a trip, an album that demands to be listened to from start to finish, no skipping. Regardless of who’s singing or playing, COC nailed all 14 songs.
(What a sound Metallica could have had, with James Hetfield backed up by Pepper Keenan on vocals!) Metallica are fans - Pep auditioned for them on bass when Newsted left the band. Pepper’s vocals lent them a southern edge. The resulting album Deliverance is 14 tracks (give or take an instrumental or two) of heavy, dirty metal they way they make it in Raleigh, North Carolina. Dean was also COC’s vocalist from time to time in the past, and gets a lead vocal once again on the title track. As for Mike Dean, his punk roots and busy bass are important to the sound of this band. Pepper scored a hit for COC last time out with a lead vocal on “Vote With a Bullet”, so it was a logical move. After the departure of bassist Phil Swisher and singer Karl Agell (who both turned up later in Leadfoot), they promoted Pepper Keenan to lead vocals, and brought back founding member Mike Dean on bass. Six-stringers Woody Weatherman and Pepper Keenan have a way of making their guitar licks sound slippery and heavy at the same time.Ĭorrosion of Conformity (“COC”) did something really smart when they set out to record this album. Gre-ea-easy! That’s how the molton hot guitars sound on this landmark album. CORROSION OF CONFORMITY – Deliverance (1994 Sony)