Sadus - Elements of Anger

Man, I love this album. Having first heard Sadus through demos in high school, I lost track of them after Swallowed in Black (1990). They consistently put out material on Roadrunner, but to little or no notice of the metal communtity. Finally, after about 4 years, Sadus return as a trio and put out what I consider to be their finest work yet. Retaining the icy presicion and musical chops that they are known for, Elements of Anger also incorporates quite a bit of added "effects" to produce a real atmospheric album. The tone switches from all out metal to an almost Kyuss/Sleep feel, especially on Crutch. This is an important aspect for me, because it seems as though most albums that come out have exactly the same pace and sound the entire album. Unless the one paradigm you have is just godly, this is gonna get boring real quick. Most of the top albums have shifts in the structure of the album. This allows each track to be differentiated from the next, and gives the listener a chance to distinguish between tracks. In this department, Elements of anger is right on target, with expert songwriting and feel. Steve DiGiorgio, after lending his talents out to Death for numerous albums, is back in full form, and displays the prowess that he has come to be revered for. Jon Allen's playing is impeccable and always tasty, supporting the buzzsaw guitar riffs and incredible solos. Sadus have a real knack for writing incredibly technical songs that never patronize or alienate the listener. This hiatus may have been necessary to produce this opus, but if so, it was well worth the wait! Highly recommended.