Review Summary: Breed for Satanas, Die for Goatgod!
They often say fake it until you make it, confidence comes simply from the perception of it. While I am not sure if I can believe in the effectiveness of this sort of sentiment in job interviews, this album has made a believer that whether proficient or not Impaled Nazarene’s confidence is more than enough to make themselves appear brilliant. While this album is not without its fault it shines with a level of confidence that can be rarely spoken of when it comes to a black metal record.
Part of what makes this album seem so confident is just as how unabashedly straightforward it is. While this album’s lyrical content may be about over the top war-chants for Satan and sexual activities with goats galore, it is hard not to get sucked into just how how far the band takes its themes. Over the topness is an aspect true to the heart this whole record. One of the first notable aspects about this album is just how intense everything feels which simultaneously lacking any punch. The vocalist is extremely powerful, but not gruesome, not vicious as he is simply over the top and intense. The instruments follow suite in a similar fashion: while this very much a black metal record with low-fi, gritty riffs they are neutered in such a way that they lose their viciousness. The intensity of this album is not from hatred, or from anger, even though the lyrics and actual notes played by the members could perhaps convey otherwise, any intentions of evil are thrown out the window by the production.
This album is very cleanly produced; every instrument is heard very clearly and given lots of room to breathe. The mixing of the vocals especially stand out as being much louder than the rest of the instrumentation, this production choice both helps the album in some ways but in others may perhaps be detrimental to some listeners. On one hand the sheer volume and forcefulness of the vocals adds an extra layer of intensity, he certainly does his job well but because of the way the album is produced the album loses a sense of cohesiveness that could have been much more prominent if the band had chosen to bury and weave the vocals within the instrumentals as per the usual standard of a black metal record.
This album however is not a black metal record in the strict sense there is also a very notable punk and grindcore influence throughout. Some of the riffs on this album make it hard not to be reminded 80’s hardcore acts such Discharge. While sometimes both styles are melded together they are also played individually as well. While at first it may not seem like these genres could necessarily meld well together, the forceful nature of the album makes it work. The sheer intensity draws a lot from punk rather than black metal in that regard.
While this album is chocked full of silly ideas that work with mixed results it is often hard to be bothered by them while listening to this, this is a fun record and the sheer intensity of it all often makes any head-scratching transitions feel more like afterthoughts because you’ll be so busy being caught up in the craziness that is the amalgamation of goat penetrating, hardcore punk, Satan metal.
