New Zealand’s Ulcerate have pushed constant limits with their unique brand of atmospheric death metal which relies profoundly of layers of dissonance and abrasion that rot into the minds of their listeners. The band have produced an expansive catalogue of releases since their 2000 inception that delve deep into dense atmospheric territory and avant-garde extremity. With earlier records embracing the more chaotic and dissonant side such as Of Fracture and Failure (2007) that matches the technicality with the likes of Artificial Brain and Gorguts, whilst later releases such as Everything is Fire (2009), Shrines of Paralysis (2016) and the astounding Stare into Death and Be Still (2020) saw the band configurate their sonic identity through greater atmospheric depth and technicality often likened to that of fellow Aussie death outfit Portal. With their latest effort however, Cutting the Throat of God, imbuing a more melodic approach to their songwriting that appears to expand in atmospheric depth and deliver interesting development on the Ulcerate sound.
The album opener “To Flow Through Ashen Hearts” exemplifies this emphasis on melody through dominant guitar passages that explore various harmonic and melodic minor scales to enhance the technicality. Powerful rhythmic sections cultivate the dark ambient setting to the track whilst the melodic guitar work continues to convey the band’s emotional complexity. “The Dawn is Hollow” contains many of these melodic elements also, with a sense of hostility and existential dread. The track is further augmented through sudden dynamic shifts that allow the more atmospheric foundations to flow and personify the image of a man-made hell. Certainly, Michael Hoggard’s guitar playing is a seminal highlight to this record, the elusive and eerie melody lines he creates add to each track’s emotive and darkened tone.
Whilst the virtuosic and melodic sections are ever present, Cutting the Throat of God is not without its trademark dissonance that Ulcerate well-versed in crafting in much of their sound. “Further Opening the Wounds” is a menacing blackened death track that unleashes a ferocious brutality and rapid tempo changes that are enriched by Jamie Saint-Merat’s blisteringly intricate drum parts driving the backbone of the piece with epic shifts in tempo, timbre, and time signatures. The following track “Transfiguration In and Out of Worlds” fall further into post-metal territory pushing reliance on extended song structures and slow building heavy movements that produces an epic sense of dreading anticipation that only convolutes through technical melodic hooks and daunting death growls.
Thematically, Cutting the Throat of God continues some of the philosophical concepts explored in the band’s previous release identifying Nietzschean theories of mortality and the nihilistic characterisation human nature. Exploring these ideas of morality and the representation of one staring into the void only for the void to stare back into them can possibly be interpreted in the lyrical themes to the eerily dissonant “To See Death Just Once”. The lyrics signify a sense of existential horror being contained by man’s fear of their own consciousness and the inevitable death that follows: ‘Incarcerated in the purest cataclysm, of being, of knowing, the deepest hell’.
Another note on this album is how disturbing and ominous Paul Kelland’s low rumbling vocals add the hellish presence of each song and how their extensive run times are filled with endless levels of abrasion and sonic damnation. “Undying as an Apparition” demonstrates this epic sonic depiction of Hieronymus Bosch’s hell under tormenting melodic guitar passages that combine jarring harmonies and viscous percussive cycles that explore dynamism. The final track “Cutting the Throat of God” embodies many of the aforementioned characteristics of this record and the band as a whole, caustic waves of noise fill the spaces with harsh intensity through the brutal vocal and instrumental engagement whilst the drums produce excruciating blast beats that signal the listener’s journey as a final descent into a psychological abyss.
Likened to their previous release, Stare into Death and Be Still, Ulcerate dive into a formidable realm of philosophical despair crafted through massively complexed black/death metal soundscapes that paint a decrepit image of a looming psychologically damning underworld. Cutting the Throat of God not only exhibits the band in solid form but also explores new musical ideas that put emphasis on melody and harmony. For fans of their already immersive discography, this record will certainly feel like a new chapter in the band’s career, whilst those who are curious of Ulcerate, progressive-leaning extreme metal in general, may find Cutting the Throat of God to be a reasonably successful entry point to get started.
