26th April 2024

Review: “The Path of Destruction” by Godeth

“’The Path of Destruction’ captures what the band are about, bringing hard hitting riffs, groove, and ferocity along with thought provoking and sinister lyrics about the struggles of life and the world we live in. With the help of producer Adam Gadsby, we feel we have pushed ourselves to another level and have made something we are truly proud of.” ~ Godeth

Having forged a sound that binds together deeply enticing groove, pummelling Death Metal and punishing Hardcore with their debut EP “Life To Flame“, Leeds natives Godeth have spent the past three years reducing venues in the North of England rubble. That reign of terror went as far as Hellfest France and Bloodstock Open Air Festival before the need to refuel and now drummer Danney Campey, bassist Jimmy Johnstone, vocalist Miles Case-Watson and axe wielding maniacs Luke Dyde and Dylan Walters come armed with “The Path of Destruction“. Produced by Adam Gadsby (Isolate, Deceiver, On Hollow Ground) it finds single “Scald” cut adrift as stand alone and instead offers up six fresh pieces of evidence…

…the first of which is “Test My Resolve“, a tune which clocks in at one second short of two minutes and finds the band coming in swinging with something that sounds like it was a demo from “Nomad” era Kublai Khan. At the heavy end of Metallic Hardcore it’s the kind of track that the mosh pit was made for. Threatening to burst into the flames of Deathcore at any moment but never quite reaching that level of brutality, instead it cuts like a butchers knife slowing down in the second half before cutting off when another verse and chorus would have been gratefully received. Instead the five piece harness the 2003 American Metalcore sound for the blistering first half of “Coup De Grace” before pulling out of the magicians hat a tasteful solo. Whether its intentional or not, the mid section has the air of a 90’s Industrial stomp before an unexpected clean vocal moment in the final third finds them approaching the early albums of Motionless In White in their stylings. That’s not a bad thing by any means, the lyrical darkness Godeth offer providing far more grit than the Americans have offered in recent times and “Cartilage” follows suit, Case-Watson dragging the listener kicking and screaming into his dark world. A well crafted cut that is broody and accessible, it highlights how far the band have come in their time together and their ability to cross sub-genres with a single track is testament to that. After the hard edged melodies comes a skull crushing breakdown section as Case-Watson tears himself apart before fleeting blast beats end it on a blackened note.

Twisting and contorting with pulsating dark energy “Solace” comes to life with a circle pit starting urgency as if the band have 90’s Groove Metal on intravenous drip. Not only is it infectious but this one has that air of familiarity about it that gives it a real edge, a classy solo and “bleigh!” moment making it stand out like a hammer smashed thumb. Clanky down tuned bass with a flavour of Bakersfield boys KoRn from Johnstone gives “Hatred” another dimension but this punchy little number has a whole lot more to it than that with powerful rhythm guitars and pulverising kit work to drive home the lyrics. Sticking to their prescription, there is a melodic break with bass and clean vocal before the stomping closing and if the band introduced some icy keys for a Gothic edge it wouldn’t have surprised. The title track “Path Of Destruction” delivers an ominous message as the it burns to be, the band delivering it with passages of bone rattling blasting and slick riffs. Slowly that evolves into Blackened Death Metal, suggesting that their next burnt offering will be both darker and heavier, which is a disturbing thought. As a record, this one feels like a transitional piece that will see the five piece go from caterpillar to flesh eating vampire bat and it has something for everyone [7.5/10]

Track Listing