Review Summary: This is where it began, folks – this is where God Dethroned became a war-centered, skull-smashing, dictionary-defining death metal act.
In 2004, death metal legends
God Dethroned delivered a masterpiece of war, politics, and historical accounts. With
The Lair of the White Worm, the four-piece from the Netherlands surpassed many of their past releases, if not all of them, and built the framework that would inspire the masterpieces that are “Passiondale” and “Under the Sign of the Iron Cross”. This is where it began, folks – this is where
God Dethroned became a war-centered, skull-smashing, dictionary-defining death metal act. The stepping stones that came before pale in comparison to this record. As a mid-piece in their back-catalogue,
The Lair of the White Worm is just what any band wants – a step up from the past, and a massive building block toward improvement. With that in mind, let’s venture headfirst into the album – just like we ventured into your mother.
Some amazing musical structuring is present within this album. Seriously, I don’t know who’s behind it (probably Sattler), but these guys are fuc
king unreal. They know how to structure music. They know when to slow down, when to groove, and when to speed the fuc
k up and kick your fuc
kin’ ass, the latter of which is quite a bit more frequent. The groove moments on this album (see: “Rusty Nails”) are impeccable, sure, but the real action is uncompromising and fuc
king deadly. Whether you like it or not, you’re being bent over – and your ass is gonna get kicked, hard. If you thought they were gonna slow down after the title track, you were way off, because “Loyal to the Crown of God Dethroned” started playing, and your ass is suddenly gone again.
There are plenty of faults with this album’s production, though, and most of them are bass-related. However, the album’s mixing still succeeds in doing what the past albums didn’t. That’s right, Bobby, they boosted Sattler’s fuc
king amazing vocals above the rest of the mix, providing a natural leader for the band’s sound, and still fleshed out the guitars and drums very well. So, yeah, I don’t have much to say here; it could have done a lot more with the bass, but it didn’t. It did a lot with the guitars, drums, and vocals, so kudos for that – whatever the fuc
k kudos are. Fuc
kin’ granola bars or somethin’. I used to eat that shit when I was a kid…
The guitars that serve as the prelude to Sattler’s vocals lasts about four seconds, but it’s still memorable for what it is – and if you stop choking on the vox, you can make them out pretty easily. The musicianship showcased here is both solid and proficient, showing that the band isn’t afraid of expanding their skill set and keeping things interesting for us hungry fans. The best part is that while the guitarwork on
White Worm compliments the rest of the mix, it still serves as a way for the songs to branch off in new directions. Have you heard the title track? No? Fuc
k you. Listen to it. Halfway through, you’ll hear what I mean – the guitars and the drums together form an integral piece, but it seems to be the former (that’s the guitars, you idiot) that drives the change in pace and force. Really, really good shit. You don’t have to agree, sure, but you can also go fuc
k yourself, so there.
Oh, by the way, I figured out what kudos were. Somebody ship, like, eighty boxes of this stuff over to Sattler for his vocals, because they’re amazing. They grind, they shriek, they rend and they tear, and they probably make bacon, too. Arguably the best part of Sattler’s performance is his vocals, and when you hear his proficiency with the proverbial axe, that’s not a small claim. What’s better is that despite his pure brutality, there’s still a strong key of emotion that’s very prominent in his vocals,
and you rarely need to check a lyric sheet; Sattler is almost completely intelligible from the get-go, making
White Worm one of the most accessible albums in
God Dethroned’s catalogue without losing any measure of strength or force. I did mention vocals when I covered the production of
White Worm, as well, and that’s not a mistake – these vocals are intense on their own, but because they’re coupled with the production, they reign supreme. Sattler delivers great guitar riffs, the occasional solo, and the always-fuc
king-fantastic vocals, all in one release. Imagine that.
For the record, I don’t even like bacon, but if Sattler’s vocals made me some, I’d eat that shit. All. Day.
The basswork on this album is hindered by the production. Absolutely. Fuc
king. Hindered. You can barely hear it. The guitars and drums and vocals more than make up for it, but if there’s anyone disputing the quality of the album… they better be pinning the blame on the basswork. Or they can shove a fork up their ass and treat themselves to a spicy beef buttrito. Either way, their self-mutilation won’t affect the basswork or the production, so we’re stuck with a bloody asshole, an album without a solid bass performance, and no hospital within five miles. Good luck walking.
The drums are your standard
God Dethroned drums, except better, because it’s
White Worm and this album is that great. No, seriously, the drums are way more powerful this time around; Ariën must have found himself on this record, because his previous work on
Into the Lungs of Hell wasn’t nearly as intense or punishing. If you’re a fan of the drumming styles you hear on the band’s last two albums, which you should be because only idiots aren’t fans of those albums, you’ll dig this record’s drums. It’s powerful, it’s punishing, and it complements the rest of the band without sacrificing anything. Nothing more to say.
The lyrics on this record in particular deserve special mention. As I mentioned earlier,
White Worm is the first war-centered album that
God Dethroned put out (at least in terms of recent history and not the Crusades or whatever), but the lyrics are also very political and anti-religious at times. I think I should take a breather for a sec, though, and let the lyrics speak for themselves:
What’s the point of digging countless graves,
When there’s no one left, to dig these countless graves?
…
For a Nihilist, nothing is at least something!
This line. I don’t think anyone here knows how powerful it really is, unless you’ve listened to this album as much as I have. It’s fuc
king amazing. Its real meaning hit me while I was writing a first draft review for this record, and I sort of stopped, rewinded, listened again, and erased what I had written so I could write this instead. Was it a bad idea? Probably, but fuc
k it. Nothing is at least something. The lyrics on
White Worm are really great because while Sattler spits them with emotion and shreds the fuc
k out of your ears with his vocals, the emotion with which he delivers these words of suffering is truly felt. Not only that, but almost every lyrical passage is delivered in an addictive and – dare I say it? – catchy manner that the lyrics gain a new meaning unto themselves. The lyrics are intense, and the vocals only serve to compliment their gravity. The lyrics of
White Worm are legitimately serious, and they were done right, too. Honestly, I think that’s how you can sum up the album as a whole – it’s an honest, serious, and exquisitely well-executed attempt at death metal, and it was done right. Good on you guys,
God Dethroned. That’s some really great shit you’ve got there.
Recommended Tracks
1. Nihilist
2. Arch Enemy Spain
3. Sigma Enigma
4. The Lair of the White Worm
6. Loyal to the Crown of God Dethroned
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