This being RIOTGOD's second album to date, I have to say I'm thoroughly blown to bits at the quality and eclectic factor of the material herein. The chemistry between the members of this band is palpable to a point where you gotta feel every last note of each and every tune down to its core with every passing listen. Those guys are bleeding their art, honing their craft, worshipping their own fucking spot at the very top of the totem pole. They smoke you up, tear you a new one, and kick you to the fucking wild dogs, because that is simply RIOTGOD's way. Their knack for hooks is bound to make any stoner rock musician dream big. The way those vocals soar through one's brain as those marvelous licks intertwine in the background would qualify almost each and every choice cut of this roast nothing short of a masterpiece in its own right. This is a hypnotic and balls-out experience in more ways than one, and each teamplayer is at the top of its A-Game. Need I say more? This is a piece of rockin' memorablia you must own, and fucking enjoy like it's your last day on earth. If I may add, the lyrics in each of these tracks are fist-pumpin' bar-brawl anthems. That adds just the right touch of bitchin' 'tude to the joypack, like a bloomin' cherry atop a sundae that's already bound to make the maniacs of oldschool and libertine southern rock jams salivate. 

''Breed'' gets this party started without wasting any sort of fucking time. It brings up those tasty hooks like the kick of a studded boot up a government official's eyeball. It's a compact tune with a youthful and energized vibe to it, and hauls ass all across the nine yards. ''Fool'' seems to expand said yards in terms of adding in an extra kick to the Hit Song structure by bringing a slightly grungy (read: AiC-loving) grit to the tableau which showcases this band's flair for a revigorated and constantly evolving approach. ''Crossfade'' is dirty, filthy, ugly, smokey, and downright fucking heavier than both the first choice cuts of this gem of a record, bringing one fact to the forefront: it seems this disc is responding to the listener's every goddamn sense. Your soul craves for a particular void to be filled, the following track kicks in, and you can't stop grinning from ear to ear, with this immense feeling that the music is hearing *you*. ''Slow Death'' carries a deep and sore bitterness with a typically southern charm that carries waves of inner discomfort within the lyrics, but compensates largely with riffs that are spellboundingly gripping and dripping with an irresistible venom. ''Firebrand'' does bring up this clear mental picture of an open bonfire right in the middle of a rainforest. It pushes against the current, insistantly, stubbornly, in spite of all the odds going against it. It's a soulful, more introspective song, but with plenty of fiery hooks, and shiver-inducing choruses that are as revigorating as they're gut-consuming. ''Gas Station Roses'' immediately made the words LED ZEPPELIN flash bright upon my brain as I was reminded of the effectiveness of ''The Battle of Evermore''. In the Accoustic Tunes department, this simply owns. ''Tomorrow's Today'' brings the heavy adrenaline and stamina back to the forefront with a meticulously and intelligently crafted groove that is simply enchanting. The leads in this track are bloody insane. The music we have here is organized in such a way that you get pulled in and immersed before you even realize you just got absorbed completely. It's not just a song; it's a journey.

On the downside, I couldn't, for the life of me, understand the directionless riffs on ''Saving It Up''. Granted, the drum patterns are kicking butt, the vocals are slicing through the air in an attention-demanding manner, but even while trying my damndest to *like* the ideas at hand, I didn't get how this stumble could've possibly happened. Bear in mind, this is the eighth song, and the first one that seems to lack all of the qualities of the previous cuts. ''Loosely Bound'' is contemplative, nostalgic, and fairly progressive, although, from the moment the leads snake their way back in, I gotta remember exactly why I fell in love with this record at first; it mesmerizes. ''Lost'' is a punchy, moody, straight to the point motherfucker that works on all levels, carpe diem. ''Hollow Mirror'' is particularly demented and eerie, going for the traditional (read: almost inevitable in a lot of today's tongue-in-cheek doom rituals) tribal grooves and reverse vinyl scratchings. While it's fairly typical, I gotta hand it to those guys, they're having some fucking decent fun with what they do, and hell, they know how to add style to every equation, so be it. ''Rebirth'' is beautiful and smooth, ending the record on a positive, and energizing note, like a wave of warmth breezing past. This album starts out the same way it finishes; with a goddamn boost of pride of the best kind.

I want more of this type of gem piling up on my desk. If you're not into this band, you surely are listening without your heart on board.

RATING: 9/10

-Noch