LAMB OF GOD Ashes Of The Wake (20th Anniversary Edition)

If you know anything about metal in the early 2000’s, you know that Lamb of God left an indelible mark on the heavy music scene. Regarded by many as one of the cornerstone releases of modern metal, Ashes of the Wake, stands as one of the greatest records released in America, filled with modern classics like “Now You’ve Got Something to Die For,” “Hourglass” and “Laid to Rest.” In fact, every one of the songs on Ashes of the Wake is an absolute banger and crowdpleaser.

Now some twenty years later, Lamb of God celebrates the release of this blistering LP with a special 20^th Anniversary Edition. It releases as a yellow smoke double vinyl LP and double CD set. Two variants are also being sold – a standard black for you traditionalists and super funky Project M white/black/red swirl offering.

With this new anniversary edition Lamb of God fans get some real surprises on this record… and I mean real surprises. First, there’s a remix of the classic cut “Laid to Rest,” by HEALTH. If you’re expecting anything that sounds like the original, you’re going to be vastly disappointed, however, if you really dig 90’s Godflesh mixed with a slowed-down dose of NIN, this remix is most definitely for you. While it’s not my cup of tea, and not really at all what I expected, this version most definitely could find its way into some doom-oriented video game. Some people will dig it, but I think this a tough sell for most.

Speaking of Godflesh, Justin K Broadrick, vocalist and founder of the aforementioned band, remixes “Omerta.” This mix stays a but truer to the original compared to “Laid to Rest,” but it most definitely has some additional industrial components and accents throughout that make it a bit more like a melancholy dirge. It’s still heavy, in fact, it’s going vibrate your subwoofers more than a little.

Listeners also get a new version of “Another Nail for Your Coffin.” This time, however, it’s not a remix, rather a collaboration between Lamb of God, Kublai Khan TX and Malevolence. Ok. This song completely rocks and Matt Honeycutt slays the vocal. I mean – damn – listen to it! Let’s also not forget that amazing time change and groove -laden riff at about 2:36 in that they, thankfully, didn’t tinker with.

Digital and 2CD consumers will get the pre-production demos of “Laid to Rest,” “Ashes of the Wake,” and “Remorse is For the Dead.” All solid tracks and close to the originals. There are also two live cuts on the general release to close out the record. Listeners get a banging rendition of “Remorse is for the Dead” in front of their hometown, Richmond, Virginia crowd. They also get pummeling performance of “Now You’ve Got Something to Die For,” from back in 2007.

Overall, this record gives fans a lot of enjoy with some real curveballs. This new version sounds amazing and now you can revisit the face-melting badassery of this seminal record one more time.