Ashes of the Wake


Ashes of the Wake is the fourth studio album and first major-label release by American heavy metal band Lamb of God, released in 2004 via Epic Records. The album debuted at number 27 on the Billboard 200, selling 35,000 copies in its first week and being rated by Guitar World as the 49th greatest Guitar Album of all Time. This album also was rated by Metal Hammer as the 5th greatest Metal Album of The 21st Century. As of August 2010, Ashes of the Wake has sold 398,000 copies in the United States. Ten years after its release, as of 2014, sales have topped 400,000 copies sold, making it Lamb of God’s best-selling record. The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America in February 2016.
In 2021, Eli Enis of Revolver included the song "Laid to Rest" in his list of the "15 Greatest Album-Opening Songs in Metal".

Lyrical themes

Several songs on the album were inspired by the events that took place during the war in Iraq and in Afghanistan, with songs such as "Ashes of the Wake", "Now You've Got Something to Die For", "One Gun", and "The Faded Line" criticizing the war and the George W. Bush administration. "One Gun" was inspired by Nas' song "One Mic", with guitarist Mark Morton explaining, "I remember thinking, If you can change the world with one mic, you can definitely change it with one gun." "Omerta" addresses organized crime, with the title and intro quote drawing from the Sicilian Mafia's code of silence. "Break You" is about tensions between band members.

Releases

The first pressing came with a bonus disc titled "Pure American Metal", including songs taken from the band's previous albums, a live recording of the song "Black Label" from DVD Terror and Hubris, as well as a pre-production demo of the song "Laid to Rest".
The Japanese edition included a bonus song "Another Nail for Your Coffin" which was released worldwide in 2010 in a three-CD box set called Hourglass: The Anthology. The song was later included on the 15th anniversary edition of the album.
A DualDisc version was released in the United States. The DVD side contained the album in LPCM 2.0, and Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound, as well as various video clips, including the promo videos for "Now You've Got Something to Die For" and "Laid to Rest", a short on the New England Metalfest, a "Meet the Band" and a clip from the Terror and Hubris DVD. A production error in the 5.1 mix of "Break You" causes the vocals to be displaced throughout the track, and pitch shift high and low throughout the song. This error is also in the Dolby Atmos mix on Apple Music.
On August 30, 2024, Lamb released a 20th anniversary deluxe addition of the album. It featured new remixes by HEALTH, Justin K Broadrick, Kublai Khan TX, and Malevolence, along with demo and live versions of tracks from the album. In the Summer of 2024 Lamb of God went on a co headlining tour with Mastodon with both bands celebrating 20th anniversaries for their albums Ashes of the Wake and Leviathan. Both albums were played in full at each concert.

Reception

The album was generally well received; Blabbermouth.net gave it a 7 rating. Johnny Loftus of AllMusic gave it a 4 out of 5 star rating. He praised Blythe's vocals, saying they became, "Lamb of God's threshold of pain conduit." In a review by Ultimate Guitar they wrote “Blythe is what really sets this band apart from other metalcore bands out there, his scream and his growls have his distinctive sound. Only a few bands have their own original sound to the screams. Blythe is a great lyricist in my opinion, very political and it does make you think. But only a few lines will stick with you.” Entertainment Weekly writer Elisabeth Vincentelli also gave the album a positive review stating “Singer Randy Blythe nimbly but ferociously rips apart the lies that leaders tell and assails imperial bloodlust, while the band unleashes an intricate, brutal barrage of riffs and blast beats. By the end, you feel clobbered -- and oddly empowered.”

Personnel

;Lamb of God
;Additional musicians
  • Alex Skolnick – second guitar solo on song "Ashes of the Wake"
  • Chris Poland – third guitar solo on song "Ashes of the Wake"
;Artwork
  • Ken Adams – art direction, design
  • Greg Watermann – photography
;Production
;Management

Charts

Chart Peak
position
-
-

Chart Peak
position
Greek Albums 48