Lamb of God have become one of the biggest metal bands of their generation, having stepped into the gap left behind by the tragic early demise of Pantera. Their southern groove metal riffs have been delighting fans with album after album of great material and their blistering live shows have allowed them to become an arena sized band without ever going against the integrity of their roots. Therefore it’s no surprise that new album Resolution’s release will see the band being scrutinised by all and sundry.

Resolution opens up with “Straight for the Sun”, a short introduction that sets the album up for anyone unaware exactly what Lamb of God are, Heavy Metal in its purest, simplest form. There are no slow songs on here and the only time it gets close, on the intro to “Ghost Walking” which features an acoustic guitar, the band are quick to remedy any doubts, immediately slipping into their standard heavy onslaught. In many ways, however, this also sums up the main criticism that can be directed at Resolution. While nothing that Lamb of God do here can be classified as bad, you almost feel like it’s no real progression from previous albums. There are a lot of fantastic 4 minute long heavy metal songs on this album but there’s nothing that any Lamb of God fan won’t have heard before. On the other hand, however, it shows a band comfortable in what they do now. They’ve found their sound and are working hard to perfect it, and Lamb of God sit easily in the top three bands in the world doing so.

Lamb of God fans will love this and it will certainly not be given the dreaded title of their first 'dud' album. However, as great as some of the heavy metal on this album is, it’s also not going to be the one that will push Lamb of God into the stratosphere. They will, however, continue being a great metal band.