Vancouver bud metallers Bison B.C. show some shocking maturity on their sophomore outing for Metal Blade, Dark Ages. There’s still plenty of the hellraising atmosphere that so deeply permeated 2008’s Quiet Earth, but the band is beginning to sit back a little and feel out song dynamics, allowing tracks to develop more fully. They haven’t lost any of their heaviness (which I feel is unfortunately implied when discussing a band’s maturity), but they’re just starting to approach that heaviness in a new way, and Dark Ages captures the four-piece at this fascinating moment in their development.

Opener “Stressed Elephant” tops eight minutes, boasts complex melodies and arrangements and still somehow manages to leave a black eye when it’s done. It’s this duality that Dark Ages does such a good job of framing. Even when Bison B.C. are at their most Mastodon-ish, arguably the early moments of “Two-Day Booze,” they’ve begun to retain their own personality, and that comes through in the riffs and rhythms. The vocal tradeoffs between guitarists James Farwell and Dan And sound more plotted out in “Melody, This is for You” (after the three-minute heavy jam that precedes the vocals, anyway), but that only seems to enhance the overall affect of the song, which is a Dark Ages highlight.

Structured though it may be, Dark Ages is far from rigid. Humor and not taking itself too seriously was central to the success of Quiet Earth, and that remains true for the follow-up. In particular, “Take the Next Exit” gives the impression there’s definitely a story behind it, if only that the GPS in the tour van got a little too repetitive for the band’s tastes. And the doomiest song on the album is called “Fear Cave,” so you know Bison B.C. aren’t trying to include any kind of pomposity in their approach. Yes, that is as refreshing as it sounds.

They are technically proficient, though, so it’s more a situation of the band using their powers for good instead of evil. The rhythm section of bassist Masa Anzai and drummer Brad McKinnon prove lethal throughout Dark Ages, but perhaps most so on the faster, more punk-ish parts of “Melody, This is for You” and later cut “Die of Devotion,” where they deftly match Farwell and And’s angular riffing while not under- or overplaying their parts. “Die of Devotion” being situated next to “Two-Day Booze” (the two tracks also share equal length at 5:08) seems no accident, as they showcase the multiple sides of the band’s attack, ranging from hardcore crossover punk – “Two-Day Booze” even has some gang vocals that seem to echo the triumphant moment of “These are My Dress Clothes” from Quiet Earth – and chunky 21^st Century metal, and the send off of “Wendigo Pt. 3 (Let Him Burn)” stands out like a promise of good things still to come.

Any friends Quiet Earth had yet to make for the band, Dark Ages will surely win them, especially as they embark on higher profile tours like that opening for High on Fire which will have them in North Carolina (coincidentally also where they played 2009’s Planet Caravan fest) on the day of the album’s release. There’s no question Bison B.C. are on their way up, creatively and in terms of their unified playing, and Dark Ages is a definite step in the right direction. If all goes well, the next album should be a considerable payoff.

Bison B.C. on MySpace

Metal Blade Records

Tags: Bison B.C., British Columbia, Canada, Metal Blade, Vancouver

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 8th, 2010 at 12:48 pm and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.