Place of Skulls Discography of CDs

Place of Skulls music CDs Former Pentagram guitarist Victor Griffin still has the roaring guitar tone that marked his work with that band, but since 2000 he's been employing it in service of his Christian faith with Place of Skulls (the translation of Golgotha, the hill upon which Christ was crucified). Place of Skulls have been through multiple lineup changes, the most notable being the presence of Saint Vitus/Obsessed/Spirit Caravan frontman Scott "Wino" Weinrich on 2003's With Vision, but they're back to their true selves as a power trio on this, their fourth album. The mix of huge, doomy riffs and overtly Christian lyrics goes all the way back to Black Sabbath themselves, whose "After Forever," from 1971's Master of Reality, comes out quite explicitly pro-God. In the '80s and '90s, Chicago band Trouble went a similar route. Griffin has a way with a riff, and steadfastly refuses to modernize his sound; his intermittently psychedelic biker metal sounds like it could have been recorded at any time between 1969 and today, with slight allowances for technological advances (but make no mistake, this is a three-dudes-in-a-room recording, with only a few dashes of Mellotron-like keyboards or some bongos augmenting the arrangements). The lyrics, howled in Griffin's hoarse voice, leave no question as to his beliefs, but they shouldn't get in the way of anyone enjoying this record. There's also an excellent cover of Steppenwolf's "Desperation," which fits seamlessly in with the rest of the record. ~ Phil Freeman Audio Mixer: Travis Wyrick. Recording information: Lakeside Recording Studios.

Place of Skulls discography For a while there, it didn't look like Place of Skulls would ever release a third album, having announced their breakup following an exciting but not surprisingly doomed-to-be-brief ("doom," get it?) association with journeyman Scott "Wino" Weinrich (Saint Vitus, the Obsessed, Spirit Caravan, etc.) on their stellar sophomore album, With Vision. Not one to play second fiddle to anyone, Wino was soon moving on to found new band the Hidden Hand, leaving Place of Skulls founder and former Pentagram guitarist Victor Griffin to initially pack it in before deciding to simply reassume the role of single frontman role for 2006's The Black Is Never Far. And, not surprisingly, the '80s-flavored doom and heavy metal emanating from these tracks proves as solid yet unremarkable as that of Place of Skulls' debut. It's true: Griffin's always distinctive guitar work alternates megalithic riffs with evocatively melancholy ...

Place of Skulls songs Not quite existing on the lunatic fringe like most of the Southern Lord catalog, Place of Skulls skulks somewhere between the desert rifferama of Kyuss and vaguely Southern, post-Black Sabbath drudge 'n' sludge. Its debut Nailed recalls the melodic doom of Trouble (especially with the vague, bleak Christian-themed lyrics) or scene buddies Goatsnake, the arrangements heavily armed with pig-iron guitar ...

Place of Skulls CD discography 2003 album from the New Christs featuring Rob Younger of Radio Birdman. Smog Veil. 2003.