Review: Cassius King ‘Dread The Dawn’
Cassius King, Vessel Of Light and Patriarchs In Black are bands that the prolific guitarist named Dan Lorenzo has been playing with over the last few years, and he was also a founding member of both Hades and Non-Fiction in years past. Cassius King is probably my favorite of Lorenzo’s bands, with its doom laden riffs worshipping the power of Black Sabbath while reaching into many other influences in order to create their sound. The band’s second album, Dread The Dawn, is out now and released by Nomad Eel Records and MDD Records.
Vocalist Jason McMaster (Dangerous Toys) has a nice Dio sound to his vocals across much of this album and is accompanied by Lorenzo’s instantly recognizable riffing. Ron Lipnicki is behind the drum kit again, and Jimmy Schulman handles the low end, keeping the line-up intact from their first album, 2021’s Field Trip.
The album starts us off with Abandon Paradise, an up-tempo rocker that has an ‘80s hair metal vibe. I absolutely love how great McMaster sounds on this one, so clean and powerful with his approach, fitting the mood of Lorenzo’ music perfectly. Lipnicki applies some really cool drum parts; his cymbal work is top notch and mixed in with a lot of clarity.
Up next is As I Begin to Turn, and this is one of my favorite tracks on Dread The Dawn. This is Lorenzo doing what Lorenzo does best, laying down a simple yet heavy as hell riff for McMaster to sing over while allowing the rest of the band to shine as well.
The hard rock/metal meets doom metal sound of Dread The Dawn is written with flair and finesse…
Another standout is Pariah To Messiah, a track that feels as if it could be on an ‘80s-era Dio album. McMaster gives the best performance of the record on this one, and the music is on par with his vocals. Honestly, that ‘80s Dio vibe is felt throughout a good portion of Dread The Dawn, a fact that I don’t think anyone will complain about.
The title track, Dread The Dawn, is another song that is full of badass riffs, and one of the few that doesn’t have the Dio vibe. I can hear Black Sabbath and Megadeth in the riffs, I’m not even sure why Megadeth comes to mind, but it does every time I listen to this one.
Bad Man Down is the second to last song is a blues based hard rocker. I like how Lorenzo’s plays this style, keeping a heavy feel while being bluesy can create a cool sound, and Lorenzo captures that nicely. As always, McMaster gives a great studio performance, and I imagine that this one would sound fantastic in a live setting.
I think that anyone with ears will love it, particularly if they enjoy their music on a slightly heavier end of the musical spectrum. The hard rock/metal meets doom metal sound of Dread The Dawn is written with flair and finesse, with all of the band members giving amazing performances, so please go and give it a listen for yourselves! Enjoy!!!
Label: MDD Records | Nomad Eel Records
Band Links: Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram
Scribed by: Tom Hanno
