
Hiding Amongst Humans
(Ván Records)
31:30min
In a crowded market of goat suppliers in the Metal scene, Austrias ARSGOATIA (featuring ex – OUR SURVIVAL DEPENDS ON US members) stands above the mob. Their infectious blend of cold-hearted Death and very old Black Metal offered me a lifeline back into a scene that was boring me lately. I need to say that ARSGOATIA’s music isn’t particularly innovative, certainly its influences are visible on its furious, blackened sleeve. There are fragments of very early MORBID ANGEL, whiffs of BEHERIT / IMPALED NAZARENE and tastes of SLAYER when they were still wild. VENOM drapes over it all of course. Well, the mix is somehow fresh and sounds freaking bone crushing. It’s the strange blend of influences and how they interact and grind against one another that makes “Hiding Amongst Humans” so entertaining. ARSGOATIA’s focus on a barbaric and sinister ritual allows oddities and normalcies, harshness and beauty come together in a perverted yet fitting manner. Listen and understand. It’s not made for everyone of course. More information at: www.facebook.com/arsgoatiaofficial, www.facebook.com/vanrecs
Jarne Brauns