ALBUM REVIEW: Satanic Decay – Goatroach

It’s an unwritten rule that bands that feature ‘goat’ in their name go hard. Hailing from Kuopio, Finland, GOATROACH are no exception to this. Bringing their disgusting blend of blackened death and doom, their sophomore record, Satanic Decay is pure filth. Marking an evolution in their sound since their previous demos and debut, Plagueborn released in 2022, their latest cut is tighter and oozes with confidence. While being drenched in misery, tackling themes of loneliness leading to violent intrusive thoughts, what shines through is the passion behind GOATROACH. 

The first tracks on the record are loaded with HM-2 goodness, smatterings of blast beats and a sufficient amount of savage chugs to make your face ache. Of Paperhats And Copied Sigils is a deafening cacophony, giving you a taste of what’s to come and the faster sections in Cunting in Hell, and indeed the rest of the tracks,  are nailed, delivering cutthroat slices of blackened death metal. However, as the tracks start to slow and lean more into blackened doom, the anguish and violence really takes hold and the record fires up. 

GOATROACH excel at fusing the blackened elements. Kicking off most of the tracks with atmospheric doom, they are able to create a suffocating, forbidding presence with ease. Longest track on the record, Intoxicated By Necromancy seems to transport you into the middle of a ritual. Dark demonic readings and vibrant, yet crushing guitars set the scene until the song bursts open into a whirlwind of hypnotic riffs and synths and destructive, thundering drum work. Similarly, the title track is encased in malevolence. The sludgy tempo allows the thick, claggy basslines to peek through the muddy foreboding noise as vocalist Ville Pirttien’s rumbling growls and screams seep through the track. 

Satanic Decay packs a lot into the 37 minute run time and as such, doesn’t really sit comfortably into any of the genres it takes from. The slower, chugging moments interlaced with blackened elements really work well with the overall ambiance of the record. However, the tracks around the midsection of the record get lost, missing that oomph and direction of other cuts. The intro and outro tracks also feel slightly unnecessary, even if arguably they do add to the eeriness and theatrics of the record (and the goat samples are very on brand.)

Nonetheless, a decent slab of disgusting noise to close off the year from the Finnish five piece. Their return will be most welcomed when the time comes.

Rating: 6/10

Satanic Decay is out now via Sleeping Church Records.

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