Weight of the Wound

Birds of Prey: Summer Welch (bass guitar); Ben Hogg, Bo Leslie, Dave Witte, Erik Larson.
Personnel: Ben Hogg (vocals); Bo Leslie, Erik Larson (guitar); Dave Witte (drums).
Audio Mixer: Cory Smoot.
Recording information: Karma Productions, Richmond, VA (12/2005).
Heavy metal was never "pretty music" per se, and the main goal of Birds of Prey seems to be to keep it that way. Described simply as a "Southern metal group," the four-man band consists of members who have done time in other underground metal bands including Alabama Thunderpussy, Avail, Municipal Waste, and Burnt by the Sun, among countless others. With their 2006 full-length debut for Relapse, Weight of the Wound, Birds of Prey quickly show that they are admirers of classic death metal, with some Pantera-esque riff work mixed in. But one thing the group obviously does not care about is being politically correct, as evidenced by such song titles as "Mangled by Mongoloids (Ripped Apart by the Retarded)," "Buttfucked with a Shotgun Barrel," and "To Kill a Co-worker (You Ain't My Fucking Boss Man)" -- any of which could single-handedly reawaken the dormant PMRC. Aside from the shock song titles, there's not much on Weight of the Wound that differentiates it from the rest of the extreme metal pack. ~ Greg Prato