Scene veterans of countless revered acts including Aldebaran, Nightfell, Vassafor, Ritual Necromancy, Ascended Dead amongst others, in Weregoat guise, these musicians are brutal bar none. Bestial black/death metal with big hooks will always be premium for underground fans, and I am also likely to concur with initial feedback from other metal media outlets that their debut full-length album called Pestilential Rites of Infernal Fornication is their best material so far. What perfect timing to release this brutal onslaught on humanity. It is long-awaited and worth every second of the wait.
Likely to end up on my year-end-list as a top contender for one of the top five picks, I enjoyed the utter barbarity and meticulous craftsmanship that went into Weregoat’s album. In spite of the fast tempos mixing with double-kick sections and slow transitions, the band is far from sloppy. In fact, the fast downpicks are so qualitatively rendered, you will forget Blasphemy left their one and only album to mark the scene years ago, and Weregoat is the most likely contender for the throne the instrumental Canadians left behind to universal acclaim.
The band doesn’t blast and stop on Pestilential Rites. They write great songs with a clear intent on structure and songwriting chops. What music is raw to some fans production-wise, is lovingly-executed and performed by the band members in the studio. Their previous EPs Unholy Exaltation of Fullmoon Perversity and Slave Bitch of the Black Ram Master are indispensable favorites in my record collection. They step it up a notch with Pestilential Rites. Hop onto Parasitic Records’ website to purchase this golden accomplishment of bestial black metal barbarity.
Labels: Iron Bonehead Productions // Parasitic Records
Don’t pick track highlights here. It would be sacrilege to do so. This whole album should be played in its entirety in every listen. Repeat listens are welcome. This is not mainstream metal hit music in the very least, but the band plays this type of holocaustic metal with passionate verve and voracity. The production is the best the band has ever utilized for a recording. The drums may be obscure in the mix, but it suits the band’s vision well. In particular, the snare is muted and the double-kicks round out the bass notes with good reinforcement. The floor toms are also audible with some clarity, and the cymbals don’t sound like tin cans being smacked like ass!
Take it from me, you underground war/bestial/black/death metal legions, Weregoat won’t get the credibility this album rightfully deserves, as underground music doesn’t make the rounds of Metal Hammer quite often. In fact, if it ever does, it would be hilarious instead of credible for them to do so. As for me, it is one of my favorite albums this year and Cvlt Nation deservedly gives it coverage. Stop the press if another Linkin Park article lands on the magazine shelves. No fucking around or I might get raggamuffin, serious metal peeps. Mainstream fans should dig deep for an audible assault on the ears like this album brings. Weregoat releases their best material yet, and they saved it in time for a full-length release. If there’s one underground record to listen to all year, it’s this one. These savants of Lycanthropic violence and warrior bloodlust are some of the underground’s most endearing characters. Not that their dark sense of humor needs poetic license, but they are serious about creating good music, and in the end, that’s all that matters. I plan an interview in the days to come. For now, bow down to the altar of Weregoat’s Pestilential Rites of Infernal Fornication! Ready? Set? Get hammered like a nine-inch nail penetrating your asses to the sound of the howling madness.
