Archgoat — The Apocalyptic Triumphator

Six years after the release of their last full-length, Finland’s most blasphemous war metallers are back with a new album titled The Apocalyptic Triumphator. Black/death metal has the potential to be the most uncompromising, most relentless genre out there. With the combination of black metal’s ideological extremity and death metal’s visceral brutality, it seems like a match made in heaven. So how is it that this fusion of extremity can sound so tame? Horrible production, that’s how.

What’s the point of creating the most extreme metal imaginable if you have clean production that completely neuters the product? I just don’t get it. Without raw production, this type of music falls flat on its face. The guitar tone is deep and distorted, but it has no bite, no staying power. During the doomier riffs this lack of abrasiveness isn’t as noticeable, but when the band breaks into aggressive black/death riffing its absence is particularly painful. While the instrumental work is incredibly tight and the song writing is sharp and to the point, the clear production renders the album ineffective. Instead of creating pioneering war metal like they used to, Archgoat has put out an album of sterile, nowadays black/death metal. Apart from the production I really don’t have any complaints. Like I mentioned before, the songwriting and performances are great. Lots of variation in pace and style without a single slipup. And Angelslayer’s vocals are excellent as ever; it’s such a shame they were wasted on this album.

I know I’m being overly harsh here, but goddamn. Rough production is an essential part of this style of music. It’s like the chocolate chips in chocolate chip cookies. The album isn’t a bad one by any means, but lacks staying power. I think it’s safe to say you won’t be missing much by giving this album a pass. If you’re hungry for black/death metal that has some intensity behind it you’d be better off holding out for Swarþ’s upcoming EP.