This came out in 2004 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
Dearly beloved, we are here today to celebrate the union of Burning Brides.
Hailing from the mean streets of Philadelphia, this fearsome power trio first appeared on the radar with their 2000 debut Fall Of The Plastic Empire. With their blistering (and long-overdue) followup Leave No Ashes, however, they have well and truly arrived in style. These dozen cuts swagger and strut like a street punk with a switchblade, trolling a menacing landscape of bruising rhythmic thunder and searing guitar crunch that smartly cuts across metal, garage, punk, alt-rock, classic rock and grunge. But the real power behind numbers like Heart Full Of Black and Alternative Teenage Suicide is singer-guitarist Dimitri Coats, who has a way with headbanging hooks and a voice that resembles Ray Davies on steroids. “This is the sound of a rocking band,” crows Coats knowingly on the title cut. Anybody who thinks differently should speak now or forever hold their peace.
