Sevendust
Alpha
Label: Asylum/7 Bros. Records
Release Date: March 6, 2007

Sevendust, alt-metal veterans from Atlanta, GA, have recovered from 18 months of silence following injuries, recording and label changes. And with the band’s sixth studio album, Alpha, the group celebrates the group’s 10 year anniversary with a return to the ball-bustin’ days of the “Black” and “Bitch” era.

Alpha’s 12 tracks continue the one-word song title trend (9 of the 12 tracks, at least), with names like “Clueless,” “Aggression,” “Feed” and “Suffer.” Fans disappointed by the uneven mix of hard and soft on next will be happy to hear Alpha is a cohesive full-on assault.

Guitarist John Connolly (founding member) and guitarist Sonny Mayo (formerly from Snot and Amen, with the band since Next) have finally found a more cohesive arrangement for the band’s signature staccato riffs and textured, soaring power chords.

And as always, Lajon Witherspoon’s soulful, pitch perfect vocal hooks succinctly mesh with drummer Morgan Rose’s enraged screams.

We’ve seen Sevendust five times in the past 10 years, including a small-town Iowa bar stop touring on their debut self-titled disc (1997). As such, we’re a big proponent of the group’s blistering old-school metal guitars on the new album (”Suffer”), and any chance to showcase LeJon’s charismatic vocal range (”Deathstar”).

Sevendust kicked off a 57-date North American tour on Feb. 8 with supporting groups Diecast and Invitro (featuring former Snot/Soulfly guitarist Mikey Doling).Look for them at Minneapolis’ MYTH on March 17 for a memorable evening of ball kicking.