VICIOUS RUMORS – “Celebration Decay” Album Review

SUMMARY

INTRODUCTION

Every new VICIOUS RUMORS record is compared to the band’s Carl Albert-era. Whether conscious or unconscious, fair or unfair, it’s the truth. As with most artists, releases later in their career are compared to their peak. Celebration Decay is no exception to this comparison. Thankfully, VICIOUS RUMORS fans will find that Celebration Decay sounds fresh yet still like classic VICIOUS RUMORS. The vocals provided by newly acquired Nick Courtney add grit and the instrumentation is as solid as ever. In all, the album doesn’t quite live up to the band’s best, but Geoff Thorpe’s leadership provides a number of quality metal moments that hearken back to their earlier days.

REVIEW

The album begins with it’s title track, a song that has “thrash metal” written all over it. The band maintains its signature blend of heavy and harmony but leans more towards the heavy here. When the track shifts into full force at the 1:12 mark, two things become clear. First, the VICIOUS RUMORS is heavier than earlier eras. Second, the album’s production is very polished. If I ignore the opening seconds, which include cliched sound effects (sirens, bombing, news reporters, etc), every instrument comes through crystal clear and packs a punch. The production gives a modern feel to a band around since the 80s. All in all, “Celebration Decay” is a tight, head-banging opener.

Next up is “Pulse of the Dead“. One of two singles released from the album, the song is a highlight. The riffs are interesting, hard-hitting, and fit together like puzzle pieces. Ultimately, the music here is a great metal melody. Nick Courtney’s vocals are probably at their best here as the song stays within his natural vocal register. The track also includes a heavy dose of something I always associate as ‘signature Vicious Rumors’: guitars weaving in and out of harmony.

The album’s third track “Arrival of Desolation” is my personal favorite on the album. It feels like it could have been written for the Welcome to the Ball album. The guitar harmonization is great, and the IRON MAIDEN-esque galloping riffs never get old. The vocals do fall a bit flat at times but the chorus is purely epic power metal and sure to stick in your head.

“Any Last Words“, the albums fourth track, completely misses the mark for me. The music feels tired and recycled, and the lyrics are silly and amateurish – “You’re a menace to us all, like a hard shot to the balls. And I cannot wait until you’re dead”… Pass.

The album recovers it’s footing with the next track, “Asylum of Blood“. The band slows the tempo down and hits you with a metal riff that feels, for lack of a better word, meaty. And I mean that in a good way. The writing on this track is well-structured and doesn’t feel the need to dress up the riffs with flashy additions. The band keeps things straight forward with the rhythm guitars while allowing for some standout solos. This track is another that reminds of early VICIOUS RUMORS, and I would not be surprised if it was Word of Mouth inspired.

“Darkness Divine” is the only track on Celebration Decay that really slows things down into ballad territory. Unfortunately, the song misses the mark in a number of places. The vocals are off key at times, the verse and chorus feel disjointed, and the attempts to make the track an anthem fail to deliver.

In the same places that “Darkness Divine” fails, “Long Way Home” succeeds. It’s another melodic power anthem but this track is more memorable. The chorus is catchy and holds emotional gravitas. Nick Courtney’s vocal work in the chorus helps to elevate the anthem. Better yet, the track has a natural flow throughout that keeps it cohesive from start to finish.

“Cold Blooded” is a straight metal track and the music is solid, though not very memorable. The track really stumbles in the amateur lyrics. On the bright side, Nick Courtney sounds like Tim “Ripper” Owens but the content is distracting yet again. If you can get past the lyrics, this song is certainly worth a few replays, otherwise this might be another track to skip.

“Death Eternal“, the other single from Celebration Decay is a divisive song. Some folks seem to like it, but I find it to be as cliche as you can get from a power metal song. From the opening guitar squeals, soaring vocals, and the attempts to feel epic. Its as if they were given a recipe for your basic power metal song and followed the instructions exactly. To make matters worse, Nick Courtney sounds as if he’s trying to figure out how to sing the song as it goes. I am not impressed by this track and think the album would have been stronger by removing it from the set.

“Collision Course Disaster“, is not a great song title but the track itself has some highlight moments. There are flashes of the classic VICIOUS RUMORS sound. However, some of the riffs don’t match up well (they sound pieced together). It’s as if the band said “hey, we have these two cool riffs that don’t fit anywhere else. Let’s just throw them into this song“. What you end up with are some exciting moments that

The album closes on a high note with “Masquerade of Good Intentions“. This is my second favorite track, and another ode to VICIOUS RUMORS best songs. The harmonies are perfectly written and performed, the vocals match well with the instruments, and it blends heavy riffs with melody in a way that only a veteran band can.

CONCLUSION

There is a lot to like with Celebration Decay. We get vintage VICIOUS RUMORS that still sounds like it was released in 2020 and the album is sure to satisfy any hunger for new power metal. There is nothing revolutionary about this album but more tracks hit the mark than miss it. The production is crisp, clean, and fresh from start to finish, and Geoff Thorpe continues to make music worthy of the VICIOUS RUMORS names. Whiles the vocals of newcomer Nick Courtney are inconsistent and a number of the lyrics feel amateur, this does not really take away from the experience. Celebration Decay won’t gain any new fans but it is worth repeated listens for existing fans.

HIGHLIGHTS

“Pulse of the Dead”, “Arrival of Desolation”, “Masquerade of Good Intentions”