REVIEW: Lamb Of God - Into Oblivion

There are plenty of bands whose music must constantly evolve to feel noteworthy, or for the band themselves to be able to stay in the public eye. Some acts may feel that their relevance will diminish without constantly updating and reevaluating their sound, as if their identity must be fluid and free to appeal correctly. However, LAMB OF GOD does not. Not only does the band consistently keep their sonic style within the same rough vein as that in which they started, they are very very good at that exact style. And hey, if it ain’t broke…

Now some would argue that the Virginia bruisers have slowed down a tad in recent years, and that isn’t an entirely unfounded position. Their two best releases were in the early 2000’s, with the rabid Ashes Of The Wake and gargantuan Sacrament being two of the decades best metal LP’s, but the five-piece have not ever quite hit the dizzying heights of those two records since, even if every release has still had its high points that are well worth visiting. All that being said, Into Oblivion feels like a breath of fresh air has been breathed into each band member, giving new life and new energy to them all. Whilst still obviously a LAMB OF GOD record, it has its moments of new ground being broken and new riffs being spewed out of speakers in some twist on their unholy formula, that feels just that bit tighter and more muscular than those last few albums.

Title track and opening song Into Oblivion instantly throws you in at the deep end, and it already feels like the ominous atmosphere the band have utilised in isolation across a few albums has finally been distilled across an entire release. The riffs are still as gurn-inducing as ever, but do have a little more of the fearsome bite of their earlier work which is incredibly welcome. Single Parasocial Christ follows up with fantastic drums and ten-tonne groove, as Randy Blythe growls like some demonic chainsaw (quite frankly as expected) overtop it all, before Sepsis shows off a much slower and sludgier side to the band that doesn’t often get to be at the fore, but has all the gnarly atmosphere it needs to throw a venue into pure chaos.

The Killing Floor and El Vacío come afterwards and have two very different energies to present. The former is one of their trademark political ragers, complete with spittle-flecked howls - but the latter is much more in the vein of 2012’s King Me musically, as it slowly builds and grows from a restrained performance into a hulking brute of a song, never once afraid to go that little bit bigger. All of this sounds good in premise, and it most certainly is, with plenty of fantastic moments and tracks in play - but track six St Catherine’s Wheel might be the most intriguing thus far. With the odd mathcore guitar stab mixed into a more traditional LAMB OF GOD-esque chug-then-shred riff blend, it’s a great spin on their usual formula that is incredibly exciting to hear them lean into.

Blunt Force Blues once again takes the foot off the gas ever so slightly in terms of pace, although doesn’t once let up on the chokehold the band have upon the riff world. As Art Cruz builds anticipation for the final unleashing of the twin guitars of Mark Morton and Willie Adler towards the end, the tension is palpable - all underpinned by the worlds heaviest metronome, John Campbell. Bully takes the slightly more ominous, slightly downtempo route as well, as we make our way slowly and sadly towards the end of the album. Penultimate track A Thousand Years is time for another circle pit and fist-pumping sing along that both decries conflict and will most certainly cause violence at shows - until finale Devise/Destroy brings about an end to proceedings with blast beats, gutturals, and riffs aplenty; just as you’d ask for.

All in all, Into Oblivion is a triumph for the band. Taking the slight wane of their energy and revving their own engines back up is no mean feat, but to do so in excellent fashion and feel engaging without having to deviate too far from their tried-and-true sonic style is applause-worthy. LAMB OF GOD have always been masters of the riff, but with these few additions to their armoury it feels like they could still be guitar-slinging for many moons yet.

Score: 8/10

Into Oblivion will be released on Friday March 13th 2026 via Century Media / Epic Records.

Words: Jasmine Longhurst

Photos: Travis Shinn