Blood for the Master

Personnel: Sammy Duet (vocals, guitar); Louis Benjamin Falgoust (vocals); Zack Simmons (drums).
Audio Mixer: Erik Rutan.
Recording information: Mana Recording Studios, St. Petersburg, FL.
While it's always interesting when bands set out to explore bold new sonic waters, there's something to be said for doing the classics incredibly well. With their fifth album, Blood for the Master, Goatwhore do just that, delivering another album of relentless and refined blackened death metal that speaks volumes about the band's level of craftsmanship. Every element of the album is airtight, and it's from this highly fortified position that the band are able to launch and all-out metal assault, digging into their arsenal of thrash, death, and black metal riffage to destroy the eardrums of anyone they come across. From the opening moments of the first track "Collapse in Eternal Worth," it's clear that Goatwhore aren't wasting any time, opting to skip past the useless ambient intros in favor of going for the jugular straight out of the gate. This direct, heavy metal freight train approach permeates the album as tracks like "Parasitic Scriptures of the Sacred Word" and "Death to the Architects of Heaven" surge forward in a blistering frenzy that rarely lets up. Most importantly, Blood for the Master clocks in at just under 40 minutes, meaning it gets in, wrecks up the place, and gets out before the listener even has a chance to throw it out for overstaying its welcome, making the short time you'll spend being pummeled by this album time well spent. ~ Gregory Heaney