For Those About Squawk: Waldo Pecks on Goatwhore and City of Caterpillar

What’s up? It’s your old boy Waldo here, to inform you about some new and upcoming releases, good, bad, or otherwise. Remember, I’m not an elitist, you just have terrible taste.

The masters of black thrash/death thrash/black metal are back. Goatwhore returns after 25 years with their eight LP, Angels Hung from the Arches of Heaven. Inspired by “Satan,” the first thing that pops out to this birdbrain is the use of melody and the debut of new bassist Robert “TA” Coleman. I know, I need to talk more about how this sounds. Brutal in its rawness, but there’s also a clarity here that really defines the sound on this. There’s a lot going on, albeit very subtlety. You know the Goatwhore deal by now: black metal, thrash, traditional metal and some crossover. The production by Kurt Ballou is stunning, and apparently Ballou had some input on some of the sound arrangements. Basically, this record kicks some feathered ass, the recording is great, the songs are great, so get your Ouija board and start summoning the devil, because according to guitarist Sammy Duet “Prepare yourself for an unabashed violent onslaught of Satanic unsoundness of mind! All hail his Luciferian force and might!” 9 Fucking Pecks!

Classic punk/screamo City of Caterpillar has reunited to give us Mystic Sisters on Relapse. To describe this band, well, that’s quite a challenge. City of Caterpillar first made their name by trudging around in the underground punk scene for years. Basements, rundown clubs and trashed vans led the way to these guys making a name for themselves. So, this is basically what the uninitiated would tag “screamo,” but there’s so much more here. Screeching vocals, chaotic passages, beautiful melodies are all here, but make no mistake, this sounds cohesive, in fact seamless. Digging it. 7 Fucking Pecks.

Waldo out!