PHILIP H ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS Walk Through Exits Only CD (2013)

Phil Anselmo spent years as one of the most recognisable voices in heavy music, the throat behind Pantera and DOWN, and when he finally put out a solo record under his own name in 2013 he had absolutely nothing to prove and chose to make something ugly on purpose.

Walk Through Exits Only is not a nostalgia play. The Illegals, featuring Warbeast members, pushed Anselmo into thrash, sludge and groove metal territory that was rawer and more confrontational than anything his back catalogue might have suggested, produced by Michael Thompson and recorded with the kind of energy that doesn't come from trying to recapture former glories. It's the sound of someone leaning into the noise rather than away from it. For anyone who followed Pantera through the dirt, or came up through Corrosion of Conformity and Black Label Society, this one fills a very specific gap.

CD. Full length album. USA, 2013. Thrash, sludge and groove metal.

Fans of: Pantera, DOWN, Corrosion of Conformity, Black Label Society, Warbeast