100. Corrosion of Conformity – “No Cross No Crown”

And we are off and we start as we mean to go on with one of metal's most authentic, genuine and none compromising acts Corrosion to Conformity. Active since the early eighties they started as a hardcore punk outfit but in the nineties took a left turn into heavy blues territory. This is their first album in thirteen years with their classic groove metal line up but rather than stick to a tired and tested formula they have actually moved their sound on with this record. It is, as you would expect, brim-full of chunky scuzzy riffs but there also a lot more boundary pushing going on here than I had expected. There are slower moments and even some level of musical complexity beyond riff follows riff. Overall highly enjoyable.