The Albums Of Archgoat

Archgoat are a Finnish death/black metal band originally formed in 1989 by founding members “Ritual Butcherer” and “Lord Angelslayer”. Despite the band being formed in 1989 they didn’t release a full length album until 2006, this is partly due to the fact that the band essentially vanished form the black metal scene in 1993 and didn’t remerge until the release of their 2005 EP Angelslaying Black Fucking Metal. This EP was actually made up of martial originally recorded for a never finished 1993 album on Necropolis Records that was abandoned due to disagreements between the studio and the band. 

1. Invocation (Instrumental)

2. Angel of Sodomy   

3. Lord of the Void     

4. Dawn of the Black Light     

5. Luciferian Darkness

6. Desecration 

7. Black Crusade        

8. Whore of Bethlehem          

9. Grand Marshall of the Black Tower

10. Hammer of Satan

The band’s first album (Whore of Bethlehem) was released in 2006 and features Lord Angelslayer returning to provide bass and brutality with his vocals, Ritual Butcher on  Guitars and for the first time on any Archgoat release “Sinisterror” of the band Torture Killer on  Drums.

Almost right from the get go this album feels like it has something to prove, the albums sound is aggressive, crushing, oppressive and downright savage at times. Each track is an all-out blitzkrieg on the listener and seems to almost actively try to brutalize you in any way possible.

The musicianship on this album isn’t that impressive to be honest, it’s nothing we haven’t heard before, and it’s not even that original in terms of older Archgoat material, and it is certainly not technical. However, the album seems to thrive upon its raw and rough aggression that is never polished, it seems to be able to take this lack of technicality and beat you to death with it.

The highlight of the album for me personally though was the stunning, and almost inhuman vocal work of Lord Angelslayer, his vocals added a new layer of brutality to the albums sound that almost eclipsed all other elements.

 

Overall this is a superb and highly motivated album with one sole purpose, to fucking annihilate the listener.

Tracklist:

1. Intro: 3rd Invocation 
2. Apotheosis of Lucifer 
3. Tribulation of the King of Worms 
4. Goat and the Moon 
5. Sodomator of the Doomed Venus 
6. The Light-Devouring Darkness 
7. Blessed in Beast's Blood 
8. Worms Born of Martyrdom 
9. Fornicated Messiah 
10. The Dawn of the Antichrist 

The Light-Devouring Darkness was released in 2009 and see’s the same line-up from Whore of Bethlehem return to once again take up their roles in the filth and hatred that is an average Archgoat album.

Unlike the kind of slightly disorganised, low-fi sound that we heard on the Whore of Bethlehem album this release seems to put more of a focus upon the somewhat more technical musical aspect of the band’s sound, as opposed to the mainly vocal and sewage driven sound that the first full length provided. On this album we hear the vocals of Lord Angelslyer put somewhat on a back pedal, this is to me at least of great detriment to the album, as his vocal work is something truly stunning to behold.

Overall, even though this is a more technically proficient album, and has more in the way of traditional black and death metal structure, it doesn’t have the same pummelling felling that the first album did, nor does it have the same kind of ‘something to fucking prove’ kind of drive.

             

Tracklist:

1. Intro (Left Hand Path)      

2. Nuns, Cunts & Darkness    

3. The Apocalyptic Triumphator    

4. Phallic Desecrator of Sacred Gates 

5. Grand Luciferian Theophany   

6. Those Below (Who Dwell in Hell)    

7. Intro (Right Hand Path) (Instrumental) 

8. Congregation of Circumcised 

9. Sado-Magical Portal 

10. Light of Phosphorus 

11. Profanator of the 1st Commandment 

12. Funeral Pyre of Trinity         

 

The third and currently final entry in the album discography of Archgoat is the still relatively new The Apocalyptic Triumphator which was released in January of 2015, and once again saw the same line up return.

Considering how I was little bit disappointed with The Light-Devouring Darkness I was fairly apprehensive about the release of this album last year, thankfully this album fulfilled my expectations, and surpassed them, and considering this album was my second favourite album of 2015 that is no exaggeration.

This album manages to combine, and generally improve upon the best elements of both Whore of Bethlehem and The Light-Devouring Darkness. This release delivers a constantly changing pace, with a very solid blend of low-fi filth and sharp technicality, all backed by Lord Angelsleyer’s even more guttural vocals. This release also features the best drum work I have heard from Archgoat to date, along with some very dark ad heavy riffs, the best example of which is found the second and what I think is the best track, Nuns, Cunts & Darkness.

Overall I think that this is the current pinnacle in Archgoat’s career, and I just hope we don’t have to wait another six years for another full length.

 

If you have for any bizarre reason never listened to the foul assault that is the music of Finland’s Archgoat and you are a fan of bestial black metal or just plain old blackened death metal you are missing out on something very special. If you are a fan of projects like Blasphemy, Bestial Warlust, Proclamation, Abominator or Black Witchery you will likely get a kick out of Archgoat.

     

 

 

 

Rotting Christ - Rituals (2016) (Album Review)

Tracklist:

1. In Nomine Dei Nostri 
2. זה נגמר (Ze Nigmar)
3. Ἐλθὲ κύριε (Elthe Kyrie) 
4. Les Litanies de Satan (Les Fleurs du Mal)    
5. Ἄπαγε Σατανά (Apage Satana) 
6. Του θάνατου (Tou Thanatou) (Nikos Xylouris cover) 
7. For a Voice like Thunder 
8. Konx om Pax 
9. देवदेवं (Devadevam) 
10. The Four Horsemen (Aphrodite's Child cover) 

This is the new album from the Greek extreme metal duo Themis Tolis and Sakis Tolis who make up Rotting Christ. Considering how much this band’s sound has changed over the nearly three decades it has been around I was not sure what to expect from this release, and I would be lying if I said I was more than a little pessimistic about it, however, my grumpy elitism and pessimism was thankfully misplaced.

The overall feel of the album is that each track is some kind of monolithic ritual to summon some kind of dark, ancient deity. And the method being used to summon this being is incredibly sharp and very catchy riff work from Sakis Tolis, along with powerful drum work and a superb mix of spoken word, Gregorian style chant, throat singing and some good old fashioned semi clean death metal vocals. The albums overall sound is incredibly crushing and atmospheric in nature, and is about as far as it’s possible to be from the kind of sound we heard on the band’s first demo Leprosy of Death back in 1988.

In my opinion the best track’s on this album are the second track Ze Nigmar and the ninth track Devadevam, which features some fucking sitar playing for crying out loud! However this whole album should be listened to as one piece, as once broken down into tracks some of the power and drive that the album delivers is lost.

Overall I think that this album, despite all the shit it has been getting from the mainstream metal press, is pretty damn excellent. It doesn’t lose focus, and concludes very powerfully with a great Aphrodite's Child cover. I highly recommend this album to fans of later Rotting Christ material and to most black and death metal fans who like to have some experimentation of their albums. 

Buy the album here and here

       

Witte Wieven - Silhouettes of an Imprisoned Mind (2016) (EP Review)

Tracklist:

1. Ruin      
2. Silhouettes of an Imprisoned Mind      
3. Faces of Unreality

This is the debut release from the Netherlands based atmospheric black metal duo Witte Wieven which is comprised of Carmen Raats providing vocals, bass, guitars and samples, along with Sarban Grimminck providing drums and further samples.

Despite this only being a 15 minute EP, the band really manages to cram a lot of interesting material in. Over the course of the EP we hear often droning and dissonant riff work, which shifts into powerful melodic playing that gives the record movement and pace. We also here the stunning vocals of Carmen Raats, who provides ghostly classical clean vocal work that perfectly complements the more atmospheric, dissonant parts of the EP. The only thing perhaps a little out of place on this release is the volume of the drums. It seems as though in certain parts on the EP the riffs and vocals are fighting to be heard over the drums, however this is likely an issue with mixing and less a direct intention of the band.

Overall this is a really solid, purposeful and swift little release from a very promising project. This is release is definitely worth a listen for fans of atmospheric black metal and I think that the Witte Wieven project is something that will gain attention in the future.  

Support the project here