Angelslaying Black Fucking Metal

I approached Angel Slaying Black Fucking Metal apprehensively. Archgoat had just reunited in time to make this, and while I love Angelcunt (Tales of Desecration) it wasn’t exactly very thoughtful music. It was simply heavy as hell and filthy as fuck blackened death metal. Still, in a style where raw energy is the main ingredient almost no bands improve over time, and a reunion is usually the kiss of death for the band’s old legacy.

Now, I’d like to say that I was a fan of Angelcunt from the day it came out and I was awaiting this with apprehension for years, but, a simple check of my age would probably cast some doubt on that claim – after all, Angelcunt is older than I am, so saying I was a fan from day one would be a bit…odd. Well, depending on the time of year, I guess I could have been conceived on its release date, you never know. All the same, I don’t really care enough to check. Anyway, I got into black metal about a year ago and one of the first bands that were recommended to me was Archgoat. I’d been a fan of death metal for a while, so Archgoat being advertised as incredibly heavy blackened death metal caught my eye in a second. At the time my favorite band was Behemoth, and I thought that Archgoat might be something like them…well, that didn’t work out too well, but I did discover a great but totally different band. It was only by chance that I first put on Angelcunt and loved it, I could just as easily have put this in, but, alas, I did not. As Angelcunt played I was told about their breakup and reunion and that was when I became apprehensive about whether they could still hold their raw energy after such a long separation – most of which, I spent playing with legos and the like. So, after about a ten minute wait (seeing as Angelcunt is painfully short at only twelve minutes) I put this on and the wait was over – judgment day had arrived. Did Archgoat still have their spark?

Musically, the answer is undoubtedly yes. The riffs are still incredibly heavy and raw and the overall feel is still just as great as it was on their first EP. The guitars primarily alternate between speedy tremolo riffs and heavy as hell palm muted chords. Riffs alternate between fast as hell tremolo and far heavier (almost catchy) mid paced grooves. There is even a (short as hell) solo. The drums primarily blast, but there are several double bass sections, and in the end I’d say that the drums probably fall closer to the death metal side of the spectrum. The vocals are fairly standard growls, but, while they aren’t particularly interesting on their own, they fit the music perfectly. I have no idea what the lyrics are, but I’m going to guess (based on the song titles) that they aren’t too essential with regards to enjoying the album. Out of the three (although, I guess there are technically four) songs the greatest is the second, Thrice Damned Sodomized, although, they’re all great. They each pack their own signature parts, and as such, each posses their own identity. The production is raw, but every instrument is able to be heard perfectly.

The problem comes with the length of the EP. Angelcunt was excruciatingly short at twelve minutes, but this is just ridiculous. It’s only FIVE minutes long. It’s hard to even call it a single. While the music is great, it just simply isn’t enough music to pay ten or so dollars for – think about it, for a second, that’s about two bucks per minute. It’s ridiculous. If you can buy the album with either Angelcunt or their latest in some sort of deal or something, or find it in a bargain bin, go ahead, but if not, download it. The music is great, but there simply isn’t enough of it to warrant a purchase at full price. It’s a pity, because if this were longer its score would undoubtedly be in the eighties, as it’s undoubtedly on par with Angelcunt musically. Still, Archogat did manage to fix their length problem on this EP’s follow up – and their first full length – Whore of Bethlehem.