Imperial Triumphant – Goldstar

It probably has been dark outside for a couple of hours already. I haven’t really been paying much attention to the outside conditions. Not much daylight filters through the plastic covered windows anyway. The only source of light I have is a construction lamp placed in one corner of the room and the only source of heat available is a small heating fan I’ve placed on the floor on the opposite side of the room. If the frequency with which the fan starts and the prolonged periods it stays on is anything to go by, it’s probably getting below zero (that’s Celsius for ya, you Americans) outside. 

I’ve recently bought a house in the middle of nowhere, originally built in 1876 and judging by the state it’s in, that’s about the last time someone took care of it. I have taken two weeks off from work to get some things done around the house. It’s late, I’m tired and this is the last Sunday before I’m supposed to be back at work. I haven’t gotten as much done around the house these past two weeks as I initially hoped I would. But before I call it a day, I’d really like to get the roof painted in the nursery.

I decide it’s time to listen to Goldstar. I’ve been wanting to do that for the last week, but I haven’t really been in the mood for what I imagine is going to be a confusing and attention-craving listen. Now I need something to help me stay focused at this late hour though. In all fairness I haven’t been completely sold on Imperial Triumphant in the past. I’ve always respected what they’re doing but my overall feeling has been that their previous releases have lacked a bit of focus and I was expecting something along those lines with Goldstar too. Little did I know what was coming.

I’m happy to say I was wrong this time. 

What awaited me was Imperial Triumphant doing Imperial Triumphant stuff but better. More focused, more tasteful, dare I say even more dissonant? They’ve cut the runtime down on this album compared to their previous outings and it really works wonders for the overall experience. Complexity and chaos in modest doses can energize you as doctors always say, but sometimes it’s okay to cater to some accessibility and semi-lighthearted fun too. 

From the get-go of “Eye of Mars” through “Hotel Sphinx” you get treated with dissonant riffage, blast beats, Gojira sounding hammer on riffs, reverb drenched country-smelling plucked chords, paradiddle drum exercises, slap bass, death growls and lord knows what else. (What even is a time signature?) By the time “NEWYORKCITY” comes it feels like a breather, no matter how strange it feels to call a 40 second grindcore-weirdo-vocals explosion a breather.  The closing three tracks (after the t/t interlude) all proceed in the same manner and a personal highlight on the album is the ending of “Industry of Misery” where we get treated to Imperial Triumphant’s version of tastefully executed peace and calm. 

Overall, I feel like this is Imperial Triumphant’s formula perfected and this is where I’d recommend anyone new to the band to start. Shoutout to the production too. It is perfect, of course, and I’m so certain this was produced by Marston I’m not even going to bother fact checking that. 

As Goldstar ends, I wrap things up around the house for now and walk out into the cold, dark night where I notice three very different thoughts that come to mind. 

This is going to be fine. This is where I’m supposed to be.

Maybe one day in a not-so-distant future I may get to bond with my future daughter over some dissonant tech whatever avant-garde jazz death metal.

I really need to start working on the floors next week.

-Sniff