Mastodawn

Angry Metal Guy Nov 27, 2024

By Doom_et_Al

Black metal goes with just about anything, so they say. Shoegaze? Check (Deafheaven). Rock ‘n’ roll? Check (Kvelertak). Hell, even dream-pop has been incorporated (An Autumn for Crippled Children). Black metal covers of famous songs are now fairly standard (Fleshgod Apocalypse’s cover of Eiffel 65’s “Blue” and Children of Bodom’s cover of “Oops!… I Did it Again” stand as fairly notorious examples). But when Spider God released their infamous set of covers, Black Renditions, in 2022, the combination of overt pop sensibilities with legit black metal bona fides made metalheads take notice, if only for some to turn their noses up. Two full-lengths of varying quality followed (2022’s Fly in the Trap was a tonal misstep, corrected by 2024’s more energetic and fun The Killing Room). Now, the final part of the trilogy, Possess the Devil is here. Trilogies are notoriously hard to conclude well. Is this The Return of the King? Or The Godfather Part III?

For those who haven’t been keeping up, Possess the Devil follows the mysterious disappearance of ex-band member, Faustus, who got caught up in a deadly online game called—you guessed it!—”Possess the Devil.” This album promises to bring the mystery to an epic conclusion. Or something. I’m not sure that many people care when the vocals are indecipherable. What they might care about, however, is the sound. Spider God promise to not only continue the pop sensibilities noted on previous albums but to incorporate metalcore as well. Now… we have an awful lot of genre cooks in this particular kitchen. And they’re starting to throw things at each other…

The major issue with Possess the Devil is that, to my ears, the addition of new elements has unbalanced a sound that was perched precariously to begin with. The wonderful sense of melodicism remains, but the black metal has been almost entirely discarded, and what’s left is melodeath/metalcore with screeched black metal rasps. But there’s a reason the best melodeath bands have versatile vocalists: the songs rely on melody, and require vocal support to highlight the material. Spider God’s monochromatic growls jar instead with the music. In addition, the aural assault is so all-consuming, so front-and-center in the mix, that the album becomes wearying by the halfway point. This is a real pity because when you give it the time it deserves (and allow your ears a break), the material is some of the best Spider God have put out in their career. The pop has given way to a more Gothenburg-esque sound (think early Tribulation) which feels more natural than the pop/black metal of earlier stuff. Ironically, the best tracks are the ones that abandon the black metal aesthetic altogether. Musically, this is the best musical material of Spider God’s career. I just wish it were better integrated.

I’m also not entirely convinced the ‘mystery’ schtick works at this point. The band clearly loves True Crime and unsolved mysteries, and there’s nothing wrong with incorporating what you love into your work. But the pop and melodicism just don’t gel in my ears with the subject matter. Imagine Britney had sung, “Oops!… I slit her throat again!” Metal fans would rejoice, but it would be kinda weird for everyone else. Possess the Devil is kinda weird, not helped by the fact that the mystery element is totally pointless without a lyric sheet and, frankly, not all that interesting.

Possess the Devil is an odd duck. As the band moves ever away from black metal, the quality of their sound is refined and improved. Yet the reliance on black metal tropes (including the vocals) unbalances the sound. The “true mystery” vibe is also running dangerously thin. While fans of their material will undoubtedly enjoy this, I don’t think it’s persuading the doubters. I am glad this trilogy is over because I think it represents an opportunity for a talented band to think about where to next. Spider God feel like they’re caught (like a Fly in a Trap?) between their past and their future. This transition album is a flawed testament to that. It will be fascinating whether they march forward to melodeath/metalcore, or head back to their roots of underground black metal. Either way, I will be listening.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Repose Records
Websites: spider-god.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/spidergodband
Releases Worldwide: November 14th, 2024

#2024 #30 #BlackMetal #Deafheaven #EnglishMetal #Kvelertak #Metalcore #Nov24 #ReposeRecords #Review #Reviews #SpiderGod

Spider God - Possess the Devil Review | Angry Metal Guy

A review of Possess the Devil by Spider God, released worldwide on November 14th via Repose Records

Angry Metal Guy

Angry Metal Guy Jan 29, 2024

Spider God – The Killing Room Review

By Doom_et_Al

Some metal bands are, by their nature, divisive. This divisiveness can take many forms (a gross name, misanthropic actions, controversial statements) and may be intentional (as a way of garnering attention) or just part of who the band are. Spider God, a UK-based black metal outfit, fall into the latter category. They exploded on the scene in 2022 with Black Renditions, which took classic pop tracks, blackened ‘em up, and released them on an unsuspecting metal scene. It was audacious, it was confrontational, it was antithetical to what many consider one of the sacred tenets of black metal: namely that this is not saccharine music for the masses in general, and teenage girls in particular. Our own SpongeFren fell in love immediately. If you know him, you’ll know that nothing tickles his fancy quite like bold genre-splicing, so, unsurprisingly, he gushed like a fanboi. The follow-up, Fly in the Trap, was controversial for different reasons. Maintaining the debut’s hyper-melodic tone, this original material was based on a true crime, namely the mysterious death of a young woman found submerged in a hotel roof tank. The combination of overly clean production, weird tone, and the question of exploitation of real-life tragedy left me (and others) with mixed feelings. Now we have the third album. Will the divisiveness continue?

I’ve often felt that small changes can make a big difference, especially in music. The Killing Room, ostensibly, is very similar to Fly in the Trap, even down to its eerie and unsettling cover. Same hyper (and I mean hyper) melodicism, same “true crime” theme (we’ll get to that), same aesthetic… The concept this time is that ex-band member “Faustus” has gone missing under mysterious circumstances after becoming embroiled in a deadly online game known as “Possess the Devil.” The album features his lyrics before he disappeared, promising a mystery for the listener to solve. It is, in keeping with the trend of 2023, Part 1 of 2. Now, at this stage, you’re either intrigued or rolling your eyes hard. If you couldn’t handle the previous offerings, there’s nothing here that will bring you round. Similarly, if you loved the older material, this will continue to appeal. The interesting group are the unconvinced. The good news is that there are just enough tinkers and changes to perhaps persuade you.

The first major tweak is the band continuing to evolve away from black metal, and embracing either a more “black ‘n’ roll” aesthetic (“s.p.i.d.e.r.g.o.d.,” “The Black Web”) or going full pop on many of the tracks. If you removed the vocals from “Silicon Witch,” or “The Cloud of Unknowing,” both would fit nicely into any indie band’s repertoire. Crucially, Spider God hang onto the component that drew attention to them in the first place: their ability to marry insanely catchy hooks with harsh metal elements. This reaches its apotheosis on album centerpiece, and most impressive Spider God song to date, the 10-minute-long “The Killing Room.” It’s compelling, interesting, baffling, and confusing. In other words, Spider God is in musical form.

The second tweak is that moving away from real-life tragedy to artificial mystery removes the “ick” exploitation factor that pervaded the last album, making The Killing Room much easier to enjoy. It also eliminates some of the tonal mismatch of Fly in the Trap (nerdy mystery is fun, which suits the music). I still find it odd that Spider God want us to embrace an almost total pop aesthetic and a creepy and potentially violent story, but this is their schtick, and they cling to it. The overly clean production of its predecessor has been grimed up, which suits the material hugely, although I would love them to open it up a bit more and let the material breathe. The band has also wisely decided to push the vocals back and beef up the bass. All these small tweaks may be minor individually, but the improvement is notable.

Both The Killing Room and Spider God have grown on me enormously in the 2 weeks I’ve been listening to them. The band likes metal. It also likes pop. It takes a while to wrap your head around this combo, but it certainly is unique, especially when the band is as committed as Spider God. In addition, the band has tinkered and adjusted itself in response to the criticisms of Fly in the Trap. This will not appeal to everyone, and there will be the usual gatekeeping nonsense from some quarters. But if you’re willing to open your mind, you’ll find much reward in The Killing Room.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Repose Records
Website: spider-god.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/spidergodband/
Releases Worldwide: December 25th, 2023

#2023 #35 #BlackMetal #Dec23 #ReposeRecords #Review #Reviews #SpiderGod #UKMetal