Necroholocaust: Holocaustic Goat Metal

Vancouver, BC is known for killer whales, the Canucks, pine trees, liberal pot laws, and Devin Townsend; all good and (somewhat) wholesome things. But there is something else lurking beneath the progressive northwestern city by the bay. Something filthy and rancid, stinking of blasphemy and a hate for all that reeks of Jesus Christ. It is Necroholocaust, who since 2003 have occupied an obscure spike on the mailed fist of black metal which they themselves have dubbed 'goat metal.' Releasing a ton of splits – a few of which bear some not-so-subtle titles such as 'Fuck Norway' and 'Bestial Laceration of Angelcunts' – Necroholocaust has carven their own chamber out of hell's brimstone bedrock, playing a style of no-frills black metal intent only on melting faces and churning stomachs. 2014 sees them releasing their debut full length album on Iron Bonehead Records. Entitled Holocaustic Goat Metal, will it codify their prior, briefer outbursts into a successful whole, or is the full-length format too challenging a beast for them?

Luckily for all involved, Holocaustic Goat Metal proves to be a tour de force for this kind of music. A strained intro of discordant feedback and screams paints the usual hellish picture before the battery begins. What saves music this extreme from getting itself lost is, of course, the production. It can make or break albums, and here it is utilized to devastatingly good effect. Each strike of the snare, floor tom, high hat, and crash is perfectly enunciated. The bass is dripping with delicious heaviness, while the riffs are audible and sharp as Satan's incisors.

The songs on the album bear out Necroholocaust's multi-faceted style, blending elements of black metal and death metal with some good old fashioned grindcore. This is most apparent with regards to the monotone, septic rumble of the vocal attack. A varied tempo which melds blast beats to some slower, neck-snapping moments features that same hellish bellow throughout. At first it seemed like this could get boring, but after repeated spins this blasphemous behemoth of an album certainly worms its way under the flesh of the listener. In times when the bass guitar is given a brief solo, one is reminded of the bass tone on an old Napalm Death record. In this way the album should please fans of both schools of extreme aural stimulus.

If you're searching for a new take on black metal, then Necroholocaust is not for you. Many of the same tropes of tolling bells, crackling fire, air raid sirens, and demonic screams appear on this debut. For some that may seem trite or overdone, but for those who relish grinding extreme metal, who do not tire of the fist in the face of God, Holocaustic Goat Metal hits the spot like a rusty axe to the cerebellum. Sea of Tranquility rates this album a 3.5 out of 5.

Track Listing
1. Side1
2. Side 2

Added: October 2nd 2014
Reviewer: Nicholas Franco
Score:
Related Link: Band Facebook Page
Hits: 1875
Language: english

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