Review by Frost on January 3, 2022.

Ah, Phil Anselmo. Just like the great Dan Swanö, this man is truly a workhorse in the metal world. Whether you love him or hate him, you can't deny that his presence is consistently felt like a supersonic bulldozer roaring through everything in its path. With bands like Pantera, Arson Anthem, Down, Superjoint Ritual, and a whole host of others under his belt, his resume is certainly fuller than most. With Phil embroiled in controversy after controversy, as well as him getting up in age (he's in his late 40's now), one would assume he'd slow down a bit.

Right?

As per expected, the advent of time and age hasn't slowed the NOLA native by any stretch. In fact, he's only gotten more determined, more energized, more explosive, more pissed off.

Now I have a question for everyone. Does anyone remember Phil's brief stint with black metal? It was in a band called Viking Crown with Killjoy on vocals. Two albums were produced by that little side project and while they were very rough around the edges and basically felt as if you were having nails driven into your ears by a demented goblin demon, they weren't really all that good. Well, Phil's going back down the black metal path, except this time, he seems to have learned a few things over the years after playing in Viking Crown for that short time. I don't know what he did, but Scour's debut EP is relentless, dark, apocalyptic, and evil as hell.

Scour is the hundredth side project of Mr. Anselmo and this is definitely one of his best since Down, in my opinion. This EP clocks in at a very brief 13 minutes with only six tracks. Even though the tracks themselves are so very short (the longest track is the opening track, which almost hits three minutes), each track is laced with scorched earth riffs and unholy frigid tremolos. The drums are running completely out of control in most places with blasts and fills galore, but they are somehow able to remain tight and precise. You can thank the amazing talents of the members from bands like Cattle Decapitation (Derek Engemann), Decrepit Birth (Chase Fraser), and Pig Destroyer (John Jarvis) for lending their instrumental prowess to this record. Phil's vocals are absolutely monstrous on this thing. I've never heard him reach a low this ferocious since, well, ever. I think after getting sober, his voice only got better, just like James Hetfield's vocals on the new Metallica record.

The album starts off with a bang - literally - with the track 'Dispatched', probably my favorite song on this record. This song has the chilliest, coldest riffs that will freeze any unprepared listener in their place and beat them senseless as Phil spews his venom in your face without the slightest hint of remorse of your struggle. It only gets better with every single song afterwards. 'Clot' and 'Crooked' both have fantastic riffs that only serve as a further reminder of how amazing and pumping metal can be. If these songs don't make you want to flip over the nearest table and drink blood out of the hollowed out skulls of your enemies (a.k.a. the next door neighbors who won't be quiet at twelve in the morning), then maybe you shouldn't be listening to this music. 'Tactics' is the sole instrumental and it's a highly contagious piece of dark ambiance that gives a smooth transition into the closer, 'Tear Gas'. My God, what a way to close out this EP; and with a line that nobody will ever forget.

"LET THE WAR BE WAGED WITH TEAR GAS!!!"

I know I won't. Phil has done it once again. With him pushing fifty, his body completely and utterly abused from drugs over the years, he's still able to still abuse his body completely and utterly. Except this time, he's doing it healthily the only way he knows how: by waging absolute fucking war upon us all. I highly recommend purchasing this EP and any official merch you can find. I hope that Phil takes the time to flesh this project out and give us a full length in the future because this is definitely a very promising beginning for Scour.

Rating: 9 out of 10