Godflesh — Post Self

Industrial metal pioneers Godflesh end 2017 with their new album Post Self . Over two years in the making, Post Self explores a different side of Godflesh, taking in their formative influences to conjure something informed by late 70’s/early 80’s post-punk and industrial music.

There’s an atonal quality, that has hitherto only been hinted at in Godflesh material, also an almost dub feel to it, which has, over the passed few albums become a little more apparent. However, where Post Self ultimately strikes a chord is the totally laid back  (and I use the term advisedly!) nature of this beast.

Opening with the title track, this ten track album throws itself down at your feet and crawls into your skin via tiny cracks in the souls of your feet, it buries itself slowly and grindingly into you, with each drilling guitar chord and every slow pounding beat Godflesh enter you.

The almost “trippy” nature of this album serves to ensure you don’t get what you expect. Godflesh aren’t a one trick pony pounding the same beat without thought or care. They showed on 2014’s  A World Lit Only By Fire that they were shifting the balance. There was almost a shoe-gazing aspect to that album.

“No Body” is the repeated casting of industrial waste as it’s being strewn across the land for neo-pagans to read and see their own futures dissolve. The constant itchiness of the tiny granular beat is almost there just to make you scratch.

With “Be God” we are being formed in his being, he is pulling us slowly into a state considered acceptable. The almost ceremonial pace and slew of guitars, drenched in reverb, cascade the dissonance down around you like water just reinforces the fact that you really aren’t worthy.
Each track is a force of nature, and yet with “The Cyclic End” we are almost treated to a pop song: after the transformation comes the celebration and dance.

Godflesh are well known, they know what they do and they do it well. And with each album they make subtle shifts on an almost tectonic level. However, with each shift comes massive changes to the landscape above.  They know each and every fan will buy this without question, the acolytes will flock to it. Don’t get left behind, if you want to hear a band at the pinnacle of their sound, then this is it. Join up, flock towards, and be nourished by their soul crunching beauty.