Deliverance - Assimilation (2001)
Deliverance is back with their 8th official studio album after a 6-year hiatus! The long anticipated return of Deliverance was marked with a well-received performance at 2001's Cornerstone festival (which is also scheduled to be released as a live cd this fall!). The new material, in my opinion, seems to pick up where 1995's "Camelot In Smithereens" left off. "Assimilation" has an underlying industrial sound to it. They have even incorporated some keyboards, samples and effects ala Circle of Dust. Not to fear though, they still retain a ton of the guitar driven metal sound of earlier Deliverance! The overall guitar sound is thick and heavy with some massive grooves, once again showcasing Jimmy's brilliance as a rhythm guitarist. For those unfamiliar with Deliverance the vocals of Jimmy P. Brown II are nothing short of phenomenal. Jimmy's songwriting, guitar work and most notably vocal skills have long been a pillar in the Christian metal community. Vocalists such as Geoff Tate (Queensryche) and David Bowie influence his style. Although I wasn't extremely impressed upon my first listen to this disc, I must admit that it grew on me quickly and now after multiple listens I can safely say this is one of my favorite releases this year. The music is superb and Jimmy gives his best vocal performance to date. His vocals are emotional and haunting. The Bowie influence is clearly intact in such tracks as "The Learned Man" which sounds like it actually could be a Bowie tune with its hypnotic guitar tones at the ending of the song. The lyrics on here are spiritually deep, mature and intelligent. For people who were looking for "Weapons of Our Warfare part 2" you are out of luck, but for a true Deliverance fan and for those with open minds to great heavy music this will be a welcomed addition to your collections! -- Review by Norm