Sahg - II

[Dolamite S. Biffle]

SAHG’s first album "I" really grabbed me the first time I listened to it, so when the promo for "II" was up for grabs I was all over it. For those unfamiliar with the band they in my opinion are the band at the forefront of the SABBATH-esque throwbacks. Their riffs are the most memorable and also the band features a member of GORGOROTH, not much more evil than that.

The band began in 2004 when the members wanted to make a record that was a departure from their other bands. They were then signed to Regain and eventually released an album in 2006. The praise that the album received led them to play Hole In The Sky, Inferno Fest and a opening spot on the CELTIC FROST U.S. tour. Writing for "II" began in spring of 2007 with the release being a few weeks ago.

This record starts off right where "I" left off. I can not quite put my finger on what I like so much about the tone of Olav’s voice, but it is made for music like this. The guitar solo is fricking sick and reminds me distinctly of an Iommi solo. Now if you haven’t heard SAHG before their sound is kind of hard to place because their sound is very diverse though if you had to, Stoner Metal I guess unless you wanted to create the genre Sabbath-esque Metal. "Echoes Ring Forever" has much more of a foot stomping rhythm to it compared to the first track which was much more spacey sounding. The music that is going on in the background during the second guitar solo is a trip in and of itself. While this song is really good sounding particularly the chorus, I think that it could have been cut short a little.

The third track is more like an interlude clocking in at just over two minutes. Pretty pointless I thought, didn’t really add anything to the overall completeness of the record. "Star-Crossed" is back to the same feel as the first one; their own kind of Doom/Stoner sound that fits snuggly within the genres. This track is not quite as good as the first since it has the tendency to drag on a little bit. The next track is a very slow one that features only a pretty clean guitar sound. The vocal effect that Olav uses on the rest of the record sounds even more psychedelic than anywhere else on the album possibly due to the lack of awesome fuzzy laden guitars that are in attendance on almost every other track. The speed picks up with "Pyromancer" and could have come almost directly off any Ozzy era SABBATH album. "Pyromancer" is easily one of my favorite tracks from the album.

Another slow start to the next track and picks up to about the speed of the signature SAHG tracks from earlier in the album. Once the guitar solo kicks in is when the song really starts to kick ass, one of the best solos on the album particularly for the mind-bending effect at the end of it. "By The Toll of The Bell" combines the main two style of tracks on this album: the foot stomper and the psychedelic. This track has all of the best parts of the album minus the catchiness that "Pyromancer" has. The last track while a really good needed to be cut down since it was a little too slow for me; think YOB slowness.

I feel that "II" is not as good as "I", but the latter is one of the best from these sub-genres. I think that if SAHG sticks to the four to five minute songs rather than extending them to six minutes plus they pack more punch and leave more of an impact. "II" is for any fan of SABBATH and bands that are trying to revive that old school sound.

7.5/10