Gods of the Earth (2008)

The Sword emerge from the lumbering sludge of Black Sabbath-style '70s metal that defined their debut, Age of Winters. Now worshipping at the '80s altar of Judas Priest, the foursome crafts steely guitar-monies for Arthurian epics like ''Maiden, Mother & Crone'' on Gods of the Earth. Although vocalist J.D. Cronise can't quite hit the castrato peaks of Priest frontman Rob Halford, Sword's hell-bent-for-leather propulsion (''Under the Boughs'') and twisty song structures (''Lords'') are more than enough to induce your ears to bleed with pleasure. A-
DOWNLOAD THIS: Hear ''Fire Lances of the Ancient Hyperzephyrians'' on the Sword's MySpace page