25th December 2020

Review: “Goatacalypse” by Bite The Goat

Saint Petersburg, Russia isn’t necessary the first place you’d think of as being home to a Technical Progressive Deathcore act. Mind you, would you even think that the words ‘Technical‘ and ‘Progressive‘ could be used to describe Deathcore? Well… Why not? If you can have Skate Punk Thrash then you can have Technical Progressive Deathcore. It’s all in the eyes and ears of the beholder and if it sounds good, who cares about the genre tag it’s been given? Just listen to it and if you like it, tell all your friends. And if you don’t have any friends? Just buy the bands t-shirt and wear it around town so any innocent bystander can see your dedication to the cause and hopefully they get inspired.

In step Bite The Goat with “Goatacalypse“. Evidence for the jury to consider when talking about that sub genre tagging. The introduction piece “BTG” is as sinister as they come with a creepy horror flick synth pattern that is reminiscent of the additions that Misstiq usually infuses into Deathcore bands works while also having some blunt force trauma to the head style thick gauge riffs with DJent overtones. “I Am God” throws down the gauntlet with some Tech Metal riffs between the battering concrete slab DJent. The sweeps are impressive while the blood and thunder vocals touch the void between Deathcore and Slam while being shrill enough to be perfectly audiable. The result is the joy of being able to roar along with something brutally heavy. “Black Chasm” has a wonderful gallop in the loose and fast kit work that is technically superior. There is no doubt that sharing a stage with for example The Black Dahlia Murder would see Bite The Goat hold their own and win over more than their fair share of fans in doing so. The only touch to Deathcore in this Death Metal track is the staccato closing, while the lead flourishes are incredible.

Lighting up then place like a nitro flame from the exhaust of a highly modified performance sports car, “Soul With A Flaw” has the riffs to confirm that Bite The Goat are a force to be reckoned with. The drumming performance is brutally pummelling with Black Metal touches while the oppressive dark atmospheric is lit up by Deathcore guitar bends. “Retribution” uses double bass pedals to great effect, maintaining a high BPM from the very start while orientating around a very tight Deathcore groove that underpins everything neatly. The solo sounds fresh and gritty while the vocals are as throat shreddingly effective as a Molotov cocktail. The haunting synths at the opening of “Alone” end up underpinning the riffs giving everything an ethereal touch. Technically efficient and surprisingly vibrant, Bite The Goat take the work of Shokran and make it heavier in every way [8.5/10]

Track listing