GOD FORBID? Yes, I heard that name before but for some reason rather expected some SUFFOCATION clone behind it. Completely wrong! This is sort of melodic Death Metal and song No. 2 for example, ‘Antihero’, reminds me quite a bit of the Gothenburg style, especially the harmonious leads. The overall appearance of this New Jersey outfit is much slower, though, definitely heavier than the usual Scandinavian band. With a LOT more balls. At times almost kinda Hardcore or what I’d take for Hardcore. Powerfully mixed by Colin Richardson. Actually, I didn’t listen to this style lately at all. It was either more “pop”, like ABBA, MAIDEN or EVANESCENCE, for example, or it was more extreme in the classic Voices direction. So basically, I had a hard time getting into GOD FORBID at first. I wouldn’t necessarily say I’m addicted by now but I like “Gone Forever” a lot because of the band’s talent concerning dynamics (‘Washed Out World’!!!) as they don’t over-exaggerate their strong Hardcore influences and for their gift to create beautifully sad melodies. Especially the carefully added melodic vocals caught my attention. This is also gonna work killer in a live situation I bet and I can recommend this CD to everybody who likes his daily dose of aggression served with style. This won’t be the last time I put on GOD FORBID.