LSODI was rather pleased to get this as, somehow, I’d never managed to sit down and listen to this oddly named (for a black metal band) set of Americans. They don’t mess around either; pretty much straight into the title track. Mid paced and fairly straight down the line black metal opens up with some very good vocals and a hefty riff swinging down intro the sinister realm. Good enough to get the blood flowing before the more up tempo, maelstrom driven Acid Gate plunges onwards. It has teeth and approaches the howling chaos wind state without really stepping inside. Still; good and snarling nevertheless.

The production here is reasonable; lots off bottom end to add depth to the occasional intoned vocals and a good drum sound. No thick blanket in other words. You do occasionally find yourself wishing for a sharper top end when the classic bm treble takes hold but at least on songs like the pretty cool chug of R’lyeh Wuurm I guess it does add a more subterranean sound.

The Swords are also a pretty concise troop; all the eight songs here get straight to the point and damned well stay on it. There is no fat here, no filler, just fairly stripped down, very well coordinated beast. Despite the thrash being mentioned though, really you’ll be well off the mark if you’re expecting Aura Noir style assaults or Destroyer 666 ripping: This is very much in the gritty black metal template. There are those little touches of death metal in the background and the rather fine closing song Oaken Chrysalis has a surprising, hook and twisted blackdeath metal groove to it and is by far my favorite song on here. The closing few seconds are a lovely, creepy end too.

Which I guess brings me too the hard point. I’m sure these guys will, now three albums in, have no problem in garnering fans and I also suspect that they have a lot to offer live as the music just kind of has that feel. But something here has killed the energy for me except on that final track. Maybe they need to ditch the brakes a bit more often and drag in a bit more chaos. Nothing here is bad but… in the end good as it all is there is nort much that makes me want to get up and scream with them.

When you hear the name Lightning Swords Of Death tied with the Metal Blade label you might think of a thrash band, all hi-tops and skinny jeans. When you discover that they are a black metal/thrash band it certainly makes you sit up and think they may have something different on offer. Unfortunately on the strength off this I have to say they don’t for me. They do have some rather good, well played, but pretty orthodox black metal from the pre-keyboard end off the spectrum. Nothing, not one thing wrong with it, not one thing, just nothing to make me jump around either I’m afraid.

( 6.5/10 Gizmo)

http://www.myspace.com/lightningswordsofdeath