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██▌ Artist...: Nekrogoblikon ░▐██▌
░▐██ Album....: Heavy Meta ░██▌░
▓▐██ Year.....: 2015 ▓▐██▓
▓▐██ Rel.Date.: 2021-03-28 ░▐██▓
▐██ Genre....: Heavy Metal ██▌░
░ ██▌ Label....: Mystery Box ██▌
▐██ Source...: Vinyl (12") ▐██
░▐██▌ Type.....: Album ▐██▌░
▓▄████ Quality..: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo ████▌░
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Side A :
a1. The End of Infinity 3:41
a2. We've Had Enough 3:20
a3. Bring Us More 2:57
a4. Snax & Violence 3:26
a5. Atlantis 6:58
Side B :
b1. We Need a Gimmick 3:57
b2. Full Body Xplosion 4:11
b3. Let's Get Fucked 3:11
b4. Mood Swing 4:04
b5. Nekrogoblikon 4:05
------
39:50
Nekrogoblikon are back with 'Heavy Meta', an album that's brief yet
powerful, catchy yet complex. So far every Nekrogoblikon album is
slightly different, whilst maintaining their distinct trademark sound.
In my opinion this is marks the difference between a good band and a
great band. Plenty of bands, after experiencing a popular and successful
album, run victory laps and essentially release the same album over and
over again. Nekrogoblikon have luckily continued to change and aren't
afraid to experiment. They aren't afraid to challenge the tropes
commonly used in other metal bands and 'Heavy Meta' is a testament to
this statement.
'Heavy Meta' has not a single song over the 5 minute mark, many of the
songs are formulaic in their arrangements, and every song reliably has a
hook and chorus. This is certainly Nekrogoblikon's most commercial
release to date, and yet it's still more forward thinking than many of
their contemporaries and forebears. Despite this, he album sacrifices
none of the bite from albums past. The production is crisp and even more
pleasantly surprising is that the songs all flow together so well that
it feels like you're listening to a concept album, or at least a
cohesive work of art.
The first four tracks are reliably similar and effective, laden with
hooks, solos, and choruses. The the most powerful segment of the album
however, is the middle. "Atlantis" has a less conventional song
structure and yet has some of the most interesting chord progressions,
textures, and vocals. "We Need a Gimmick" and "Full Body Xplosion" are
easily the album's best songs, sporting the album's most catchy choruses
and riffs. In particular, the breakdown/bridge section of "Full Body
Xplosion" wherein Scorpion shouts "Full body explosion! HA! HOOAH!" over
an absolutely groovalicious riff is a joy to listen to.
The album closes out with the wonderful "Mood Swing" and
"Nekrogoblikon", the latter of which has a fun reference to 'The Army of
Darkness" ("Klatu verata necto!"). Unfortunately however, the appearance
of Andrew W.K. in "Let's Get Fucked" is disappointing.
I find it interesting and admirable that Nekrogoblikon is aware that
they have a gimmick and yet they don't sacrifice or sell out their metal
sound. 'Heavy Meta' is entertaining, has high replay value, and is a
wonderful addition to their excellent discography.
---
In a world of metal mascots overwhelmingly dominated by zombie-like
figures and skeletons, Nekrogoblikon have found the obvious (yet somehow
overlooked) solution in the form of goblins. If you are not yet familiar
with these hilarious and hugely talented dudes do yourself a favor and
check out their previous albums and EP (Goblin Island, Stench, and
Power). Nekrogoblikon's first album 'Goblin Island' fused comedy and
folk metal together while Stench brought a more mature approach to the
fusion of comedic themes and folk metal. By the time they released Power
the folk elements began to shrink and the comedy became more self aware,
while the music began to become a bit heavier and more diverse. It is
finally here on their newest album, Heavy Meta, that we experience the
new style Power had foreshadowed.
Vocalist Scorpion is a joy to listen to on this record. His harsh vocals
are unique, often disgusting, and torturous sounding. The clean vocals
this time around have become more prominent and Scorpion's skill here
has finally started to measure up. As far as the clean singing goes,
Scorpion is no Michael Kiske but the vocal lines fit the songs perfectly
and are often the most memorable part.
Much like the evolution from Stench to Power, everything on this record
is a huge improvement. Stench's guitar-work leaned more towards a hybrid
of melo-death and folk metal, while Power's guitar-work became a bit
more groove and hook oriented. On Heavy Meta, the rhythm section retains
the chuggy goodness of their previous release while adding a very proggy
lead section. One of the most important improvements/changes on this
album is in the keys/sound effects section of the lineup. Previously the
keys leaned more towards folksy and symphonic sounds, while on Heavy
Meta the key section is much more reminiscent of 80's synth pop mixed
with Little Richard styled piano riffs (not kidding). Another great
thing to note about this album is the added audibility in the production
of the bass. The bass-work and drumming have been a highlight for
Nekrogoblikon since their sophomore release and it's nice to finally get
to hear it well.
The songwriting on Heavy Meta is far and away the best, most left of
center Nekrogoblikon has ever been. The songs are filled with hooks,
humor, heaviness, and thought provoking progressive sections. I wish I
could compare it to someone to give readers a better idea of what to
expect but the closest I could come up with would be that it kind of
sounds like if you took The Human Abstract, Devin Townsend Project,
Little Richard, and the Kung Fury sound track, and put it all in a
blender.
Overall, this is the weirdest release of the band's career thus far, in
the best possible way. This is an album that will be on the top end of
my year list for sure, and it's only June 2nd. Highlights include "End
of Infinity", "We Need a Gimmick", and "Mood Swing".
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