Review Summary: What Golgatha lack in originality they more than make up for in copious amounts of potential.
From the melodeath-tinged riffs at the beginning of
Battle Cry to the final guitar solo of
Weapon of Choice, this EP is one that knows what it's doing.
Strength of the World, the debut release of relatively new Texan metal act
Golgatha, is a record that showcases an incredible level of maturity, especially for a band that is not even a full year old. It does not toy with any revolutionary or new musical concepts, and most everything has been done before to a certain extent by others. However, even the most elite of metalheads knows that it is completely unrealistic to demand pure originality from every release and every band.
Golgatha know this, and instead of attempting to tread new musical ground (a path that can lead to failure much more easily than it can lead to success), they choose to combine a vast slew of influences into something that, while it is derivative in its obvious influences from other acts, comes together and blends in a relatively fresh and unique manner.
The two main musical elements that are present here are metalcore and thrash, with some hints of melodeath, progressive, and hardcore thrown in to good effect. The vocals also span a variety of influences, ranging from thrashy barks to metalcore screams to an interesting vibrato-heavy clean that, while pleasant in small doses, can easily become mildly irksome when it is overused. Technically, it’s all-around above-average fare for
Golgatha, with a liberal use of shredding solos, blast beats, and a smattering of catchy basslines. Songs such as
Intolerance showcase the band at their best, deftly blending thrash riffs, catchy choruses, breakdowns, and tasteful technicality to create some music that displays a huge amount of potential for this little Texan band.
Ruiner is an impressive death-infused thrash track that shows that
Golgatha are more than capable of melting faces, while in
Untitled they do the opposite and try their hand at writing a power ballad. They accomplish this feat with a surprising degree of success, even if the pseudo-operatic cleans are used more than is necessary.
Golgatha, while obviously having a huge amount of potential, are a young and inexperienced act. The production is weak (given, this is something that cannot be held against such a new band), and they do break into overly generic and boring metalcore chugfests on occasion (namely in closer
Weapon of Choice). They still have yet to find their voice musically and create something that truly sets them apart from the crowd, but with
Strength of the World,
Golgatha are well on their way to greatness. Their core ideas are strong, and with some refinement, some better production, and a few more original ideas, they could become a force to watch out for.
[A]http://golgathaband.bandcamp.com/[/A]
