Man, Crowbar have sure been solid and reliable over the years, the band—here with new bassist Shane Wesley—building an incredible body of work during their decades of existence. Now they're with new label MNRK Heavy, which sounds like a red flag, but luckily the tunes on Zero And Below, to the surprise of no one, totally deliver. The riffing that kicks off opener “The Fear That Binds You” is pure Kirk Windstein, as is the groove, the tempo, the vibe... this is Crowbar, man, and they just nail it here. 

“Her Evil Is Sacred” is peak Crowbar; this sounds like it could have been off any of the band's best albums, and that's saying a lot. “Confess To Nothing” is “I Have Failed” for 2022; “Chemical Godz” has tasteful, soulful riffs that ooze for miles; “Denial Of The Truth” is about as heavy as music gets. “Bleeding From Every Hole” is a head-shaker of a title, and the song travels speeds both sluggish and punk with grace. The title track closes off this stately doom album with a massive slow drip of melody and anguish, exactly how a good Crowbar record should end off. The band has sat on this record for a couple years, not wanting to release it during COVID. That's their only mistake: music this good, this enveloping, this moving is exactly what we needed during the height of the pandemic. 

Zero And Below is another victory from a band who just can't stop winning with their beautiful misery. Long may they suffer, and long may we reap the rewards.