CoC : Nunslaughter - Goat : Review

Nunslaughter - _Goat_
(Metal War Productions, 2003)
by: Matthias Noll (7 out of 10)

With seemingly more releases than the entire back catalogue of Iron Maiden (including reissues), it's quite difficult to keep track what's going on with Nunslaughter. After an endless stream of studio rehearsals and live recordings, these old-school lunatics have finally managed to release another studio full-length. Quite surprisingly, _Goat_ introduces a couple of changes in the ultra-stubborn and primitive Nunslaughter approach: the production is cleaner than on _Hell's Unholy Fires_, and this time around the song structures on some tracks, as well as the number, usage and positioning of breaks, are much closer to traditional thrash metal than they've been on earlier material that I'm familiar with. While these changes might come as a bit of a surprise, they do not mean that the band shows any signs of wimping out on us or adopting a less underground stance. Don of the Dead's vocals are as throaty and charismatic as ever, there are no guitar solos, and the lyrics still deal with ever popular topics such as nun-raping and every other imaginable blasphemy. The word technical still does not make the slightest sense when trying to describe the music on _Goat_. However, I feel that the changes I've spotted have a slightly diminishing effect on the uniqueness of Nunslaughter's stylistic identity. Songs like the relentless opening track "The Crowned and Conquering Hag" thrash raw, fast and teeth-grittingly good, but follow the construction plan for second wave thrash metal tunes a bit too closely. Setting my minor gripes aside, I have to say that overall_Goat_ and especially tracks like "Raid the Convent" are certainly good enough to require immediate addition to the collection of every fan of '80s style raw, no-nonsense death-thrash.

(article published 30/10/2003)