Review by Vladimir on April 1, 2023.

So here I am back with more Polish black metal, this time focusing on a new band called Gołoledź (“black ice” in Polish) from Zielona Góra/Lubusz. Gołoledź has been active since 2021, and has released their self-titled debut album on November 18th, 2022 via D.I.Y. Koło Records. Although at first glance you might think that you’ll be facing another raw polish black metal band, on the contrary it’s not what you’d expect.

The first track 'Sam Na Zawsze' starts everything with a slow doomy riff, but is then followed with melodic tremolo picking and alternate picking guitar work with blast beat drums with lots of double-bass work and screeching vocals. Other tracks such as 'Odwet', 'Wojna O Pokój' and 'Gołoledź' take things to a different turn, introducing d-beat and crust punk elements fused with black metal, while still incorporating the established double-bass drum work which more frequently used on this album. There are also instances of some slow and atmospheric moments which can be heard on 'Najgorsza Kara' and 'Wolność Umysłu'. The music of Gołoledź could pretty much be considered as modern black metal for its C standard tuned guitars and the songwriting style, with influences of crust punk/d-beat which were fused quite well with the atmospheric, melodic and alternative riffs. Although I said that it is a modern-day black metal band, it’s important to note that their music doesn’t in any way resemble the sound of Mgła (except maybe for "With Hearts Towards None") or any other bands which fall in that category. I was surprised that this wasn’t a case of your typical black metal, but an interesting turn which might give you goosebumps if you’re more into the newer stuff that’s out there. What I really like beside their songwriting is the album production, which although is very high quality, isn’t sterile and thus manages to push the guitar tone to a certain point where it’s borderline death metal sounding, while also carefully bringing the vocals, distorted bass and the drums on the right level in the mix.

I must say that I was more than surprised to have come across such a powerful and unusual black metal release which hasn’t mishandled anything, thus successfully achieving its goal to break out of the comfort zone and bring something interesting to the table. The album is quite a banger and Gołoledź certainly does show more than just a potential for a solid future within the world of extreme metal music. For fans of modern black metal, as well as fans of black metal fused with crust punk and d-beat, check this out, you surely don’t want to miss it. 

Rating: 9 out of 10

Review by JD on February 5, 2013.

I have not heard too many Technical Death Metal albums lately that has blown my mind. It seems that Tech Death has become a bit stagnant by what I am hearing, that was until I heard a new band that made me change my mind.

California Death newcomers Inanimate Existence took their love of bands like Necrophagist and Bloodbath, topped off with even more technique playing and added in pure melody - the results blow my mind. Without being over the top or sounding like they were just showing off for showing off sake, this band demonstrates you can make this style of metal with massive amounts of melody and still execute some of the best extreme music at the same time.

With a wall of heavy riffs, this band explodes out with surprising music that breathed life into my melancholy on Tech Death Metal. Melodic, powerful and tight... this is it. From the surprising opening of 'Dharmakaya' to the final bloody riff of 'Awaken' - this is the perfect example of Technical Death Metal i've heard in a while, and I think this might have topped many peoples expectations... especially mine.

I have been a fan of Bloodbath for a while now and now I can say that I am a fan of Inanimate Existence. For a young up and coming band such as this, gotta say that this is such amazing stuff that I am speechless. I completely see a clear future of total metallic domination for years to come, even after such an impressive debut album. With this much talent and drive that this band has... they will dominate.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 10
Atmosphere: 10
Production: 10
Originality: 10
Overall: 10

Rating: 10 out of 10