Goat
Oh Death
Rocket Recordings
21 October 2022
There is so much more to the psychedelic music of Goat than the reductive notion that they are the band playing at a devout voodoo gathering in some far-off Swedish village moments before a human sacrifice. However, the opening track on this satisfyingly fuzzy album does absolutely nothing to dispel that notion; rather ‘Oh Death’ totally revels in it.
We begin with some warpy found sound voices chanting in Python-esque bring-out-your-dead style, “did you ever think when the hearse roles by that someday you are going to die?” Then the music proper kicks in, buzzsaw guitar vibrates your speakers, a military procession drum groove ignites, and a pair of spiked female voices are chanting, “soon you die, don’t know why”; it is almost like Goat are not merely blowing away the cobwebs on their six years underground, in resurfacing they intend to trample the faint of heart who had better have the courage to get on board with this or else go running for the hills.
Goat’s last album was 2016’s ‘Requiem’, and many may have assumed they would never rise again, especially given the more sombre tones and subsequent silence from these mask-wearing curios. They had, in the years prior, rode their magic carpet across the festival stages of the globe, delighting thousands with their far-out spaceship of psych-fusion sound, determinedly retaining an air of intrigue behind those masks. To this day, little is known about Goat beyond the fact that they hail from the Swedish village of Korpilombo and are purveyors of a boundless grain of Psychedelia, one that welcomes in all manner of elements, including Jazz Fusion, Afro-Beat, rocket-fuelled Psych-Rock and dreamy acoustic cloudbursts.
This album is a rollercoaster of firecrackers. ‘Under No Nation’ is afro-funk par-excellence, that jerky rhythm reminding me a little of Talking Heads, less so towards the conclusion where it falls into freakout mayhem. The jungle rhythms on ‘Do The Dance’ summon up a Glam Rock groove, proving these wizard kings can go wild in the country with the best of them. Unexpected interludes keep the journey alive with interest, such as the introduction of a solo piano section at the end of ‘Blessings’ or the flutes and saxophone that feature in ‘Goatmilk.’ Still, nothing is revealed; ‘Blow The Horns’ does throw up the lyric “a child is born”, which feeds into the notion that the death referred to in the album title has ended in resurrection, which is certainly what has happened for Goat themselves. Whoever they are, this band have risen and served notice of their return with the most earth-shakingly punchy album of their career so far. The effect these ten tracks leave on the listener in a short 34-minute burst is head-spinningly wonderful; don’t try too hard to understand this one; just lose yourself in the giddy delight of the experience.
Order Oh Death via Bandcamp: https://goat.bandcamp.com/album/oh-death
Upcoming Tour Dates
November 8 / Hamburg / Knust
November 9 / Cologne / Kulturkirche
November 10 / Liége / Reflektor
November 11 / Kortrijk / Sonic City Festival
November 12 / Utrecht / Le Guess Who Festival
November 14 / Berlin / Festsaal Kreuzber
January 25 / Oslo / Rockefeller
January 26 / Malmö / Plan B
January 27 / Stockholm / Slaktkyrkan