Carved Into Stone

Eternal Heat blows your head off! The rest of the album is icing on a metal tipped blade of inflicted fury. I really liked Power of the Damager(personal opinion I know) being a long time Prong fan and considering Victor and crew way under rated! The grooves are here, the thrash, and possible punkish rebellion of in your face heavy metal. The welcomed whine of Victor's guitar reminds the listener of a true under rated musician, and what does it take for the rest of the world to buy a Prong album? No I'm not a spokesperson, but a long time client of peeling sessions. And to think this band was labelled progressive in the music store when I first picked up Beg to Differ.

The band wrote 25 songs and these were selected as the best material.....I would have settled for 9!
Like any album it has its ups and plateaus, but its a solid listen all the way through. I could describe each song, but all I can say is REINVESTIGATE this band. True Prong fans will pick this up, and the rest of the world should take heed and listen. Prong is back...Carved Into Stone!

If Tommy Victor isn't the hardest working guitarist in metal today, I'd like to know who is. In addition to his own band Prong, he has loaned his considerable chops once again to Ministry and their new CD "Relapse", and played on Danzig's "Dethred Sebedoh" a few years back. We are seeing in Prong, along with some other bands who have been around for several years like Overkill and Meshuggah some of the heaviest and intense music they have made in years. Age has not softened them one damn bit.
"Carved Into Stone" is absolutely crushing Prong. While all their music slays, with their unique blend of industrial, thrash and a tad bit of '80's hardcore, Prong have delivered the toughest CD since their classic "Cleansing". We get catchy rhythms, and "Revenge Best Served Cold" harkens back to "Whose Fist Is This Anyway", one of the best Prong songs ever. The guitars are densely layered as usual, and Victor's lead work just gets better with time. Stylistically, "Carved Into Stone" has some of the more melodic moments of the equally fine "Power of the Damager", strange chord voicings from "Scorpio Rising", a very underrated Prong CD if there ever was one, and the brutal slam of "Cleansing".
If there's anything I miss in Prong, it might be the vibe from the greatest Prong album ever, "Beg To Differ", a CD still 50 years ahead of its time, but that's splitting hairs. "Carved Into Stone" will be, along with Meshuggah's "Koloss" and High on Fire's "De Vermis Mysteriis" one of the year's best albums.

If Prong's 2 albums Cleansing and Rude Awakening, had a baby, and that baby grew up being babysat by Killing Joke, Carved Into Stone would be the result. Once again, Tommy Victor evolves Prong perfectly. Tommy takes the advice of a `real' producer this time and pushes his voice into new levels of clarity and harmony! Yes, there are harmonies!

Those of us that have been following Tommy since his primitive origins, will delight in the 1st run through listening of Carved Into Stone. Even though you have never heard the songs before, YOU KNOW when Tommy's classic harmonic guitar squeals are coming up. He doesn't disappoint you as he carefully and tastefully sprinkles them throughout the album. There is a real good one that is doubled in stereo with 2 squeals at the same time on the song Carved Into Stone at 2:06 for the real die-hards.

Filling in on drums this time around and in the live shows (and hopefully, forever), is Alexei Rodriguez. I believe he single-handedly pushes Tommy's writing to new levels. He has the balls to go from 4/4 disco beats into completely of the wall, out of the pocket footwork (ala the chorus of Carved Into Stone.) Taking a dude that can shred the drums with the best of them, yet isn't to `cool' to play for the actual song, is a rare thing.
Finally, the production is great. Make sure you crank this album, front to back, with no breaks, on a nice 5.1 household system 1st, before you squash it down into your crappy iPhone headphones. Tommy really creates some huge landscapes, when he switches into his big half-time break downs, throwing in his open G-string riffs ala Killing Joke.

This record will take you from Ride the Lightning type riffs (List of Grievances), to nearly dance-able, groovy as f#@k hooks (Put Myself to Sleep) into mud-drenched Sabbath sludge (Carved Into Stone) and then drop you off from a spaceship with the ending of (Path of Least Resistance). It's beautiful. Your favorite song will change each time you give it a listen. When is the last time a record has done that to you?

There is no filler on this bad boy.
Find out for yourself and support good music by purchasing this gem.
A gem carved into stone.