You hear about a band and how great they are. We've all been there. You add them to the list of CDs to purchase and think nothing of it. A day comes when you get around to buying the CD, put it in your car, and as you're driving, you get goosebumps as you've stumbled upon something special. Enter Baroness.

Baroness hail from Savannah, GA. Guitarist/lead vocalist John Baizley has done artwork for various bands such as Darkest Hour (Deliver Us), Pig Destroyer (Phantom Limb), and Skeletonwitch (Beyond the Permafrost). While all his artwork seems to have a sameness to it (note the similarities of the covers for the latest by Darkest Hour and Pig Destroyer), the music he creates with Baroness is something new and refreshing.

The album kicks off with "Rays on Pinion," and this song alone is worth the price of the CD. There are so many twists and turns you're not sure where Baroness are going next. Part `70s rock, part arena rock, and part metal -- it's all here. The album continues in this fashion until the finger-picked instrumental "Cockroach en Fleur." It sounds like something you'd write while on your front porch in the summertime at about 1 in the morning with just your dog and a bottle of whiskey.

This leads into the strongest song on the album, "Wanderlust." Great guitar melodies work along with various time signatures and a soaring verse that makes you want to take a drive and never come home. The song "Grad" closes out the album and the melody almost brings a tear to the eye with its slow tempo and guitars that sound as if they're crying.

Take Mastodon, Led Zeppelin, Motörhead, and mix with a little southern rock and you have Baroness. Get this one folks. You won't be disappointed.