Nunslaughter - Goat

Can't spell "Nunslaughter" without laughter!

(Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on March 20th 2024) 

Nunslaughter are a band I’d define as “underground heroes”. They never quite hit it big, but have nevertheless amassed a small horde of incredibly loyal fans, which they’ve been liberally showering with material over the years. Admittedly, most of it is splits and live recordings, whose importance to the band’s canon is trivial at the best of times, but even this approach has resulted in some gems being hidden throughout their catalogue. That being said, the real meat is in their full-lengths, which are never above the 35-minute mark (discounting disc 2 of Angelic Dread), of which Goat stands tallest.
To anyone who (for some reason) hasn’t been acquainted with the band yet, their sound is as straightforward as it gets. Brief and simplistic bursts of intensity that bring to mind death metal’s formative days, where it was yet to be divorced from thrash, with some punk influences sprinkled throughout. It’s not a particularly elaborate experience, but it’s executed with such gusto that it’s hard to not be swept up by the charisma the band exudes, especially with how catchy these tracks are. For how primal things here are, there are a lot of earwormy riffs and vocal lines to grab on to throughout. You just can’t help but bark along with the Don of the Dead on tracks like “She Lives By Night”, “Raid the Convent” and “Satanic Slut”, where the energy is through the roof. Even the riffing, heavily informed by bands like Possessed and Sarcófago has a pugilistic character to it, whether it’s going full-steam ahead on rippers like “The Crowned and Conquering Hag”, or slowing down to a malevolent crawl on “Ritual of Darkness” and “Thou Art in the Kingdom of Hell”.
That being said, Nunslaughter’s barebones and primitive modus operandi does lead to a few songs here and there getting overshadowed by others that are just better, no two ways about it. While “Immune to Poison” and “The Guts of Christ” showcase the band’s punk ethos at work, they lack in staying power, and the stomping “The Sephiroth” is the closest we get to boredom here, with its chunky mid-tempo going on for a bit more than it should. Nevertheless, they’re fun tunes and don’t affect the record’s pace too much, they simply fail to stick after all is said and done.
Goat is an ode to the old-school. No frills, no tricks, just a bunch of dudes playing raw and dingy sounding death metal that brings to mind the past. Despite that though it holds its own and has plenty of staying power, owing to its purity and the attitude behind it. It’s not an album for people looking for anything resembling intelligence, but for those who love having a fun time while immersed in the spirit of a time long behind us. If you love metal that’s been ripped straight from the genre’s primordial soup, you owe it to yourself to listen to this album, and all of Nunslaughter’s full-lengths for that matter.
Highlights: She Lives By Night, Raid the Convent, Satanic Slut, Thou Art in the Kingdom of Hell

Rating: 90% 

  

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