AM I EVIL? NO. GOATWHORE IS FUCKING EVIL. ALLRRIIIGGHTT!
Monday, July 6th, 2009 at 11:00am by David Bee Roth
“Apocalyptic Havoc” is one hell of a heroic entrance for Goatwhore on Carving Out the Eyes of God. It sounds like a pack of angry attack dogs (Dobermans or maybe Rotweilers) breaking their ropes and charging full speed into a crowded nursery. Not a lot of bands can build up your adrenaline from 0 that fast and after a couple listens you’ll be screaming “Alriiiigggghtttt!!” in unison with Mr. Falgoust. Forty minutes later, as you catch your breath again, you’ll probably be thinking the same thing as the rest of us: This is the catchiest album Goatwhore have ever released.
Don’t take that to mean they’ve gone pop or something. It’s a thrashy sort of catchy, with the Celtic Frost knob turned a few more clicks to right than usual. The direction they’ve gone moves away from the nauseating blast-beats of the second half A Haunted Curse and leans more towards their previous crowd pleasers like “Alchemy of the Black Sun Cult.” Goatwhore already proved to themselves – and to the world – that they could play at crippling speeds, and now they’re ready to get up in your face bear their teeth and just be plain bad-ass.
It’s incredible that music that is so rooted in black metal can actually have such potential for mass appeal. While most anyone will be able to pick up on the influence of one Tom G. Warrior on the music, it also bear similarities to the new sound of Satyricon, with more thrash and even some of Sammy Duet’s sludgy Acid Bath experience peeking out through the surface. It’s all black n’ roll, baby. Heavy music with plenty of hooks.
Talk about evil, too! I swear almost every song is filled with Satan-cuddling and promises of destruction to Christendom. The complexity in the vocal arrangements adds a lot, both with Ben Falgoust’s phrasing and verbose lyrics and the tag-team he forms with Sammy Duet (check out “In Legions, I am Wars of Wrath” and “Reckoning of Soul Made Godless”). In many ways this album combines the creepiness of Funeral Dirge for the Rotting Sun with the malicious evil of A Haunting Curse coming together perfectly in the finale “To Mourn and Forever Wander Through Forgotten Doorways.” It’s a ferocious release for a dirty black summer.
(4 Horns Out of 5)
-DBR
Damn good album
Good stuff.
2009 has been a ridiculously good year for metal, and this album is one reason why. Blackened death thrash? Fuck yes!
Yup.. I am also agreeable to this..
Awesome album, can’t stop listening to it…
Glad to see the working mans black metal band getting some good reviews…these guys are really good live as well if you have not been lucky enough to see them.
July 11th will make it the third time I’ve seen them. Their live show is what got me into the band in the first place.
This CD kicks much ass. A best of 09? YES.
Yes. [2]
this and an Overdose of Death by Toxic Holocaust. aaaaawesome albums.
GoatfuckenWhore….Can’t wait…thee Parkside going to be nuts…Devil and Loud Guitars..raulito
Pretty fucking sweet album.
buying this as soon as possible
Great band. Saw them live in a very small club. They played with Watch Them Die and High on Fire. I have no idea why those three bands came to my small ass little city full of people who only like rap, but I wasn’t complaining. Like 20 people were at the show, it was really cool though.
I’ve always found these guys to be extremely boring. I LOVE black metal and thrash, and a band that blends my two favorite genres should be my cup of tea, but I think these guys suck. They bore the living shit outta me, on record and especially live. Destroyer 666, now THERE is a band that does blackened thrash right. Speaking of which, their first album in 7 years just came out….anyone heard it? I haven’t been able to pick it up yet…..
Destroyer 666,kicks some ass but goatwhore is much better
a haunting curse is anyway the new one is good better than the ones before haunting curse but not as good as haunting curse its like a train coming through the room kick ass grind core!!!Destroyer 666 i like them too!!but slayer is the best that there ever was or will be!!!
This record kicks a heaping load of ass. Tom G and the boys should be proud to have inspired this twisted black’n'roll beastie.
I just picked up this CD yesterday and it shreds like no other! I’m seeing them in Chi-town area on the 30th and can’t wait. My only question is . . . why only four horns??
Only good part of this band is Sammy Duet.
Good album, that riff in the chorus of the title track is cum worthy.