Review Summary: It is Wednesday, my dudes
Having put out a multitude of releases on a yearly basis, it’s next to see Froglord throw a curveball with their fourth album. Sons of Froglord is noticeably more melodic than previous installments and while the lyrics maintain their cheekiness, their overarching storyline isn’t as prominent here. If the project sounded like a mix of Acid Bath and Electric Wizard before, this might be closer to Agents Of Oblivion.
There’s enough precedence for such a shift to play well to Froglord’s established swamp metal vibes, the atmosphere being murky as ever and guitars and bass still expelling plenty of sharp fuzz. The bonus cover of CCR’s “Born on the Bayou” is enough to indicate growing southern rock inspiration and the riffs on other songs are based on more upbeat swings. The vocals also opt for a cleaner approach that’s somewhere between a grungy yarl and an almost country drawl with just the right amount of hokey rounding it out.
The songwriting also reflects a breezy attitude with a mix of trudging grooves and lighthearted hooks. The opening “Wizard Gonk” and “The Sage” are early highlights with their ZZ Top through a stoner-doom filter riff sets and I can get into the swagger of “Froglady.” “Wednesday” is where things really pick up with a combination of a driving pace and ‘*** your day job’ lyrics that “Hold On” and “A Swamp of My Own” follow up with especially catchy choruses. You also gotta love that infectious sample of Skeletor laughter that appears on the minute-long “Closing Ceremony.”
While Sons of Froglord may not have the usual storytelling, it may be the amphibian’s most realized outing so far. The pronounced southern flair is a natural extension of their stoner-sludge and the songs are some of the strongest they’ve put together, even if they might’ve benefited from a rearranged track order. With how quickly this project’s turnover tends to go, it’ll be interesting to see whether these elements get explored further.
