Review Summary: You had better see a doctor about that.
<a href="http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/pic/PTGPOD/323861~Bull-s-Skull-Lying-in-the-Desert-Posters.jpg">click here</a>
The link above provides a glimpse into what Pissing Razors symbolizes; sterile deserts, desert ox skulls, and a tough-as-nails image. They also represent their homestate of Texas if the title of this offering
Where We Come From and the cover of the album (a man strapped to an electric chair with a Texas State Flag wrapped around his head) hasn’t indicated this already. I’ve never been to Texas and I’m sure it’s a wonderful state that is not full of cliches like the ones Pissing Razor’s bring to the table (capital punishment, drinking, hunting, George Bush…….just kidding). Like the picture provided above, Pissing Razors metal attack represents the skull in the middle of the desert; flesh removed from the bone, dryed out of ideas and leaves you feeling a little crusty after a listen or two.
Where We Come From is like pouring Southern Comfort on an open wound; a stupid idea and a waste of money. Coming off a relatively solid album
Fields of Disbelief,
Where We Come From takes the Pantera-ish riffs (minus the killer solos from Dimebag) and strips them down to a flat tone that feels absoluetly monotonous throughout the album. The riffs groove, but not in any direction a frequent listener of metal hasn’t heard before. The few solos to be found on here (‘Cursed’, ‘Opportunidad’, and ‘Born to Serve’) are either buzz effects during a bridge or a full on solo-attempt at making Dimebag proud. Complimenting the groove and choppy guitar riffs is a rhythm section that also falls flat on its face from an overuse of the same double bass driving beats and a typical inaudible bass guitar sound that plagues most metal albums of this kind. To make matters worse, vocalist Jason Bragg comes off as Phil Anselmo copy-cat. Even his attempt at crusty singing shouldn’t be left unnoticed because it should be noted that he just can’t pull it off.
Fortunately, the best part about this album is the time length. Coming in at only 36 minutes, you know you haven’t wasted that much of your life on this. Anyone thinking they should give these guys a spin should realize that there are metal bands out there that sound exactly like this and do this style with far more class (Pantera and Sepultura anyone?). Plagiarism is also an even bigger crime in this case; taking the hooky guitar riffs of Dimebag and simply stripping them clean of anything worthwhile. Recommended for hicks only who believe that Texas is represented by this album!
