Stone Sour’s latest release Audio Secrecy is a gem in the sea of new shit hitting the airwaves these days. Not as progressive or alternative as Jim Root’s other band Slipknot, Stone Sour have a straight ahead hard rock frontal assault. There is a slight hangover of Slipknot in the disk but by no means is this a Slipknot record.
The disk comes out swinging Mission Statement and Digital (Did You Tell) hit you right between the eyes. There is a heavy dual driven guitar sound. The drums and bass form a rhythm section that sounds like a freight train. It isn’t until the third song on the disk Say You’ll Haunt Me that the tempo subsides a bit…if if it is just for a chorus or so.
The AOR friendly ballad Dying is not what I would expect from Slipknot alum, still is a killer tune. The guitar work is fantastic. The lead is smoldering as most of the guitar on the disk is. Jim Root and Josh Rand kill it on this disk. Corey Taylor who is always on his game delivers some of his best vocals to date.
Other high points on the disk for me personally are the riff rock tune Unfinished, the pit ready Nylon 6/6 and the headbanging Hate Not Gone.
The disk is acoustic guitar heavy I would hesitate to call it ballad heavy. There are ballads thou there are a tone of tunes with slower heavy groves. Fret not there is still more than enough music here to blow out the sub woofers in your car. This is a world class album one of the best disks released this year.
Is Stone Sour doesn’t get a tour bus full of awards for this masterpiece something is very wrong. It would just prove the music world is simply fucked up.
