Music Review: Lamb of God - Hourglass

I must say that Lamb of God's Hourglass release is an interesting one that comes in many forms. I think one of the most interesting things is that it is getting released at all, not that I am complaining. I look at this set and all that it comprises and it strikes me as the sort of thing that a band releases at the end of their career or as part of a deal to close out a contract. I doubt the prior is true and I would not be surprised by the latter.

Frankly, it probably does not really matter if either of these are true or even what the real story is. The proof is in the pudding as they say and the content of the collection is all that really matters right? Now, if you are a fan of metal who doesn't know Lamb of God or someone interested in them — even fans will likely find something to like here — Hourglass is a great set of punch to the gut, kick to the face metal that gives you the full tour of the band's output to this point in their career.

Now, before going further you should probably familiarize yourself with the plethora of different forms this release takes (details obtained from the press release):

• Hourglass: The Super Deluxe Set. The limited edition definitive collectors set including The 3 CD Anthology, The Vinyl Box Set, The USB set, the Book, a Mark Morton Signature Series Jackson Dominion D2, A 4’x6’ Pure American metal Flag, an Hourglass sticker, and a signed 8x10 in a personalized Lamb of God Coffin Case.
• Hourglass: The Deluxe Set. The collectors set including The 3 CD Anthology, The Vinyl Box set, The USB Box Set, and a Linen bound 144 page book of the art of Lamb of God as created by K3n Adams including  designs for tour passes, albums, t-shirts, and his commentary on them.
• Hourglass: The USB Box Set. All 6 Lamb of God studio albums on individual USB drives in a cigarette box shaped collectors package.  Includes Burn The Priest, New American Gospel, As The Palaces Burn, Ashes of the Wake, Sacrament, and Wrath.
• Hourglass: The Vinyl Box Set. All 6 Lamb of God Studio albums for the first time on 180 Gram vinyl in a Linen-wrapped collectors box.  Includes Burn The Priest, New American Gospel, As The Palaces Burn, Ashes of the Wake, Sacrament, and Wrath.

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' } else { echo 'And then there is the version I have made up three Hourglass volumes, which will undoubtedly be the most common of the releases, not to mention the only one you will likely see in stores. I cannot say I have ever seen a USB drive release on store shelves (SD card releases are a different story and seem even sillier to me), the vinyl may be a possibility but those section are quite small in the local stores. In any case, there is enough metal in the three disk set to last you a good road trip with enough substance to keep you coming back for more.

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Volume one is subtitled: The Underground Years. The thirteen tracks cover the band's debut release under their original name Burn the Priest and their first two albums as Lamb of God, New American Gospel and their breakthrough release As the Palaces Burn.

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Article tags

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• • cd
• • collection
• • heavy
• • Lamb of god
• • metal
• • rehearsal
• • review

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Article Author: Chris Beaumont

Christopher Beaumont spends much of his time writing about music and movies when he isn't indulging in them. He is always ready to talk about his favorite form of entertainment and offer up recommendations. Follow: Twitter and Tumblr. Visit: Critical Outcast. …

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