Label- Century Media
Release Date - 18 March 2022
Words- Chris Fletcher
With a name that roughly translates as ‘lineage’, Danish blackened metallers Slaegt are back with their fourth full-length album “Goddess”, and they are not messing around. Previously handpicked by legendary At The Gates frontman Thomas Lindberg for his curated Roadburn set in 2019, Slaegt have started to fully realise their potential.
Although billed as a blackened thrash band, there is more to Slaegt than this would initially indicate. Taking the raw energy of black metal and mixing this with the bounce of NWOBHM greats, ‘Goddess’ is an accomplished mix of both these styles, without being a mere throwback. With one eye on the past and another on the future, they are pushing this style of black and roll forward whilst keeping the fundamentals front and centre.
Opening the album with some haunting atmospherics, ‘Deceived By An Amethyst’ then kicks in with a riff extremely reminiscent of Megadeth classic ‘Hangar 18’ before spoiling us with not one, but two guitar solos. This track also features the lyric “Be careful what you wish for, it might come true” and hell, if you wished for a good time, you’re in the right place.
The rest of the album continues to display the bands metal credentials as the technical, and at times frantic guitar work, is underpinned by a real chug that keeps things moving at a fast and furious pace, often hitting a sweet spot of sounding like it could go off the rails at any point without truly descending into chaos.
To go along with the expert fretwork are the vocals, which help keep things fully in the blackened camp. Harsh enough to give it a real bite whilst allowing the lyrics to remain totally decipherable is just one way in which the band manage to harness their influences into their own singular vision. Speaking of harsh, the lo-fi nature of the production really lends itself to these songs, sitting in a Goldilocks zone of not being too raw or too polished, this is just right for this record.
The only criticism that could be levelled at the band here is that the individual songs could have a bit of fat trimmed off, however at only six tracks, one of which being a sub-two minute instrumental to give you a chance to rest your neck, when it is as much fun as this you don’t really mind.
Overall this is a delicious cocktail of the seriousness of black metal mixed with the sheer fun of heavy metal. Whether you want to air guitar like nobody's watching or just bang your head with ‘Goddess’, Slaegt have you covered. Fans of bands as different as Tribulation and Kreator will find something here for them. You can really smell the blood, sweat and beers that went into this.
8/10.
Comentários