Gorod- The Sentry
Gorod has just dropped its first single ‘The Sentry’ from their upcoming album ‘ÆTHRA’ and it’s rare for me to judge whether I will like a song within the first ten seconds of hearing it but damn it if I didn’t love this within the first three. Gorod is a band that caters to a fairly niche audience, even within the metal realm as they have stuck to their signature tech-death sound with very complex compositions and vast influences and have never strayed from that unlike many other bands in the genre trying to appeal to larger audiences. This means that the fans they do have are the most dedicated ones and me being among that number I was very excited for this new release.
The production value of the song is the best that I have heard from them, with each drum hit sounding extra clear and crisp, driving the song forward just as needed. The guitar tone is also something I, as a guitar nerd, appreciated greatly because you could tell the band went through a meticulous process of dialling a sound that wasn’t afraid to hold back on the mid-range or keep the gain to a minimum, all of which made the phenomenal playing shine through and each note in the complex and dissonant chords ring out clearly.
The solos are of course, like on every Gorod record, unique and amazing, mixing rapid-fire splatter tapping with slow melodic passages to a great effect. The bass guitar is also heard clearly and utilized for more than just holding root notes which has always been a strength in this genre. The singer also showcased some clean vocals in this song which isn’t something you see very often in the heavier music realm but works great for this band to create different, almost medieval sounding dark textures (coupled with the clean guitar) that build up into heavier sections, resulting in a much more dynamic outcome.
Their last album ‘A Maze of Recycled Creeds’ personally didn’t quite hold up to the standard that ‘A Perfect Absolution’ set, but if this song is any indicator as to what the rest of the new album is going to be then I think me and many other fans will have a new favourite Gorod record.
