''Sever the Wicked Hand'' is the ninth studio album by American

sludge metal Sludge metal (also known as sludge or sludge doom) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that originated through combining elements of doom metal and hardcore punk. It is typically harsh and abrasive, often featuring shouted vocals, heavi ...

band Crowbar. It was released on February 8, 2011 via

E1 Music MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch", formerly known as Koch Records and eOne Music) is a New York City-based independent record label and music management company. It was formed in 2009 from the music assets of Koch Entertainment, which had b ...

, on February 14, 2011 via

Century Media A century is a period of 100 years. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c. A centennial or ...

in the UK, and a day later for the rest of Europe.Crowbar: New Album Track Listing, Audio Samples Available
blabbermouth.net. November 23, 2010. Retrieved on April 18, 2011. It was the band's first studio album after ''

Lifesblood for the Downtrodden ''Lifesblood for the Downtrodden'' is the eighth studio album by American sludge metal band Crowbar, released on February 8, 2005 through Candlelight Records. Its working title in 2004 had been ''You Don't Need an Enemy to Have a War''. It is de ...

'', released exactly six years before in 2005.

Background

''Sever the Wicked Hand'' was the first album that frontman

Kirk Windstein Kirk Windstein (born April 14, 1965) is an American musician. He is the frontman, vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and sole constant member of the sludge metal band Crowbar. He is also a founding member of the heavy metal supergroup Down, playing ...

recorded sober.

Critical reception

According to

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

, the album received "generally favorable" reviews and a score of 79. Writing for

Popmatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

, Adrien Begrand praised Crowbar for ensuring that its ninth album "sound so fresh while sounding so comfortably familiar at the same time", and gave particular accolades to

's vocals on "Let Me Mourn", the emotional intensity of "Echo an Eternity", and the soulful closing track, "Symbiosis". Situating the album in the context of Windstein's recent recovery from alcoholism, Eduardo Rivadavia wrote for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

that, while there are "no great revelations or revolutions" on ''Sever the Wicked Hand'', Windstein's "spirit and inspiration have clearly been revitalized, and the end results amount to a quintessential Crowbar album" among the strongest of the band's career.

Track listing

Personnel

– vocals, rhythm guitar *Matt Brunson – lead guitar *

Pat Bruders Patrick Bruders is an American musician who is the current bassist for heavy metal supergroup Down, former bassist of extreme metal band Goatwhore from 1997 to 2004, and former bassist for sludge metal band Crowbar from 2005 until 2013. ...

– bass *Tommy Buckley – drums

Guest musicians

*Patrick Plata – vocals on "A Farewell to Misery" *Duane Simoneaux – piano on "A Farewell to Misery"

Production

*Kirk Windstein – production *

Zeuss Christopher Harris (born April 1, 1972), known professionally as Zeuss, is an American record producer, mixer, guitarist, composer, and songwriter. Biography Zeuss is best known in the worlds of hard rock, heavy metal music, hardcore punk, and ...

– mixing and mastering *Duane Simoneaux – engineering *Thomas De Ville – engineering *

Mike D'Antonio Michael D'Antonio (born May 19, 1973) is best known as the bass guitarist and founder of Massachusetts metal band Killswitch Engage and of the band Overcast. Career D'Antonio's writing influences include old New York Hardcore bands like Cro-Ma ...

– art

References

{{Authority control Crowbar (American band) albums 2011 albums E1 Music albums