Thursday, January 17: Death Penalty, “Eyes of the Heretic”
Although Death Penalty was ostensibly born from the same construct as Lucifer (doom outfits fronted by mighty female vocalists and ex-Cathedral axeman Gaz Jennings), and although both bands were awesome in their own right, Death Penalty married the traditional heft of early ‘70s Sabbath to the primal force and intensity of late ‘70s Priest, making this group stand out even further from the rest of the doom revival pack. “Eyes of the Heretic” was a particular highlight of Death Penalty’s lone album: from the killer title on down, this was an absolutely lethal metal rager, with Jennings’ riffing offering that aforementioned fusion of Tony Iommi with Glenn Tipton and K.K. Downing, while Frederik Cosemans bashed his drums with efficiency and power. But it was Michelle Nocon’s staggering vocals that really made “Eyes of the Heretic” taking flight: she had power and charisma to spare, and every note seemed perfectly calibrated to lay waste to everything in her path. The song wasn’t at all ponderous or labored, it just roared with glorious metallic supremacy.
