Lightning Bolt - Wonderful Rainbow
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Wonderful Rainbow, the most D&D-influenced item in the Lightning Bolt oeuvre so far, isn't really so far-flung from their last recording, Ride the Skies, a tumultuous explosion of distorted bass and drum sound that came surprisingly close to packing the energy of the group's live performance into a convenient home audio format. In a way, Wonderful Rainbow's production, denser and thicker, gives even more weight to the music than did its predecessor, though the album lacks some of the inertia and momentum that built Ride the Skies' best tracks into frenzied explosions of sound, all of the signature Lightning Bolt sounds are still present. Their third full-length finds the duo placing more importance on the heaviness of their sound, and its rock aspects, most noticeable when drummer Brian Chippendale limits himself to a simple, almost metronomic beat instead of the caustic flurry of percussion we're accustomed to hearing from him. Chippendale's vocals, which acted almost as a third instrument until now, take on more traditional tasks at times; though they're still distorted beyond belief, they are more important melodically than ever before, and are given more of a spotlight than is usual in the Lightning Bolt sound. It's hard to argue with these minor alterations to the band's sound however, as, in a lot of ways, there's little difference between this and their last album, and what differences do exist are, however minor, changes that keep Lightning Bolt from becoming formulaic, or, at least, too formulaic.
So, Wonderful Rainbow lacks tracks as amazing as Ride the Skies' best (aside, perhaps, from "On Fire"), but maintains a level of consistency equal or superior to the former. The album finds the band adhering to essentially the same formula as always, but that makes for energetic and enjoyable listening. They lean a bit more strongly on a typical rock sound at times, but do so without sacrificing any of their musical force. I'd like to come up with some grand statement that will wonderfully and acutely describe Wonderful Rainbow's place within the contexts of Lightning Bolt's past work and/or contemporary music, but it all seems futile, because Lightning Bolt seem to hit at such a visceral level that words begin to be shaken from their meanings and bones are rattled to the core. You know what you're getting into, so don't complain when you stain your new shoes.
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