Kataklysm - Goliath (2023)^{Release ID: 46740}

As far as melodic death metal albums go, I have found a lot more time for Goliath than I would normally afford anything else from this sub-genre. Having never seen the appeal of Kataklysm from any of my previous connections with their discography (was Sorcery really that good guys??) it was odd that I ended up drawn in on their fifteenth outing. It could be that the more groove metal moments are slightly more relevant given my ongoing exploration of that sub-genre via the Clan Challenge. Tracks like Gravestones & Coffins, with its infectious riff is one of the standout tracks for me on this record but there is nothing remarkable about any aspect of Goliath overall.

After multiple listens, I have concluded that Goliath is a bit dull. However, I still find myself coming back to it, as if the background music qualities of the record somehow cannot be denied. Having taken the time to try and understand which primitive aspect of my musical nature the record appeals to, I realised that the record is nothing short of a riff-fest. Upon my sixth or seventh listen it dawned on me that the record has no lead or solo work whatsoever. Its ten tracks rely solely on chugging and groovy riffs backed by a solid if not unremarkable percussion section. With a clumsy vocal delivery to boot, Goliath is a classic smash and grab melo-death album.

Those stabbing riffs that permeate the verses, (keeping the momentum going very well it must be noted still) give way to rolling slabs of groovy and sometimes less urgent moments that somehow manage to be relevant even when they appear to be slightly out of time on occasion. I would suggest that the lack of thought around pacing is one of the albums weaker points overall. When they do get it right (Bringer of Vengeance) it works well but it is inconsistent at best throughout the record.

To go more than three tracks on any melo-death album is an achievement for me but to last for ten without their being any solo work is just a bridge too far for me. Goliath plays as a record that tells me nothing about the band. It is ten tracks that mostly sound the same and what little glimpses of variety I do get are just not doing anything to separate Kataklysm from the rest of the field. It is memorable and slightly addictive but for all the wrong reasons in the end.

I came into a new Katakalysm record with low expectations and I'm happy to say that they were painstakingly met because Goliath is incredibly average. Katakalysm's claim to fame on this record is the down tuned guitars, which almost make it sound like it's about to transform into a deathcore style breakdown at any second. And while it does provide the new album with an interesting sound; one that I find to becoming less common in the more straightforward death metal scene, but somehow does not translate well here. There are plenty of moments where the production sounds rushed and sloppy, which might have been forgivable if the record was closer to conventional death or even deathgrind, but this is melodic death and it just sounds like a giant blob. Toss on top of that some very poor mixing and performance execution and Goliath feels more like a time waster than anything of value in modern death metal.

Best Songs: Die as a King, The Redeemer, From the Land of the Living to the Land of the Dead