Comprised of St. Vitus’s Scott “Wino” Weinrich, Om’s Al Cisneros, Neurosis’s Scott Kelly, and the Melvins’ Dale Crower, Shrinebuilder are the proverbial who’s who of doom metal. Legend has it the album was recorded in a mere three days, which makes its cohesion all the more remarkable. It seems Shrinebuilder was more than able to avoid the usual pitfalls that typically derail supergroups.

What can one say about the supergroup that hasn’t already been said? A group, yes. Super? Rarely. There are reasons galore for why disappointment is too often the result when giants collide, but that is not the case with Shrinebuilder’s self-titled debut.

Problem one with most of these collaborations is that they usually consist of icons past their songwriting prime. Take the Traveling Wilburys. On paper it’s almost too ridiculously huge to fathom: a Beatle playing with Bob Dylan? Roy Orbison’s creepy falsetto mixing with Tom Petty’s southern drawl? Yet the results were a batch of unremarkable songs by guys with not much left to say. This is clearly not the case with Shrinebuilder.

Wino is the old man here, the Roy Orbison if you will. He’s been carrying the Sabbath torch since the mid-80’s after their heyday but way before most anyone else started picking through the rubble for inspiration. He was already outdated when he started which is probably why he so easily found kinship here with others willing to explore and experiment often in the face of current trends or common wisdom.

Kelly’s Neurosis have always twisted the definition of metal, adding ambiance and industrial to the mix.Whereas Cisneros’s Om has been mining the hypnotic, mystical side only hinted at by others. And Crower’s Melvins have gone wherever they damned well pleased, often painfully slow. Shrinebuilder may not deepen these explorations, but to hear each member’s unique style is what makes the album sound fresh and relevant. Not just an exercise in hubris.

The fact that all these divergent styles have come together to form a truly cohesive sounding album is one of Shrinebuiler’s biggest achievements. “Solar Benediction” kicks things off with a pretty standard Sabbath-esque riff but quickly darkens as Wino’s straight forward vocals give way to Kelly’s menacing growl. Sure, it’s like interjecting a Neurosis song into the middle of a St. Vitus one, yet the flow feels totally natural in their hands. Eventually, the song finds a completely hypnotic groove.

This is where it becomes clear that Shrinebuilder is what a supergroup should be: cagey veterans. Having been around, these guys have no fear in taking their time and letting things stretch out. And when “Solar Benediction” starts to build slowly out of the breakdown, it ends up hitting the main riff at half time rather than ending where it began. Small things like that are what make this album something to behold.

Perhaps the greatest juxtaposition of styles comes in “Pyramid of the Moon” when Scott Kelly’s slow burn gives way to Al Cisneros’s repetitive chant. Not only does it completely change the course of the song, but with a full band behind him, it’s the closest thing to Sleep Cisneros has done since that band split. Dale Crower does his best to flesh out the vibe by cramming it full of crash cymbals.

Again, the varying styles, often the death of the supergroup, are so well melded here that nothing comes completely out of the blue or sticks out like a sore thumb. Instead of trying to harness the sound of many into something more homogenized -- what in the hell was Ted Nugent doing in Damn Yankees anyways? -- Shrinebuilder found a way for everyone to work their distinctness into the album without it sounding like each other’s backing band.

Speaking of Ted Nugent, the one song where you can’t really hear a Neurosis part or an Om part is “Blind For All To See,” what almost feels like a doom take on the Motor City Madman’s “Stranglehold” bridge. Why Nugent comes up so often is beyond me. Whereas Polvo’s “D.C. Trails” off their latest only hinted at the classic Nugent breakdown, there’s is no denying the resemblance on the Shrinbuilder track. The only thing missing is the flanged-out, backwards drums. That said, the song might be the stand-out track on the album. The languid pace actually allows for some pretty cool guitar work reminiscent of Kirk Hammet on the Master of Puppets instrumental take, “Orion.” It’s interesting that the one song most devoid of recognizable influence from the members of the band conjures up Nugent and Hammet. But it’s what they do with the groove, adding hints of psychedelia and dark and menacing tones, that makes the song so striking, and it hints at the direction the group may with a little more time together.

This leads to my one disappointment, albeit a minor one. Shrinebuilder, merely only five songs and clocking in barely above 39 minutes, ends too soon. It’s a sentiment borne by how good the album is, and one that begs for this to be more more than a one-off. At the conclusion of “Science of Anger,” the album begs to be played again.

It can probably be said without argument that this is not the best thing any individual member has offered. When you have an Enemy of the Sun, Dopesmoker, Houdini, and Born Too Late under your belt, it’s not surprising that, no matter the circumstances, you won’t top yourself. Still, there’s no denying that Shrinebuilder has overcome a pretty awful and embarrassing track record left by many supergroups, which are nothing more than a failed attempt at bringing together the biggest and the best.

Taken at face value, without the orgasmic hoopla about who’s in the band, this album would no doubt still kick ass. It’s doom at its finest. Its full of small touches that make it rise above more standard Sabbath retreads, and it’s heavy as shit. Maybe it takes a subversive genre like doom metal, with its outsider, us vs. them mentality, to finally earn the right to use the “super” in supergroup.
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Catch Shrinebuilder Saturday, November 14, at the Empty Bottle. Tickets are available on Ticketweb.com right now for only $15!
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