Gorguts – From Wisdom to Hate – Review

Gorguts

From Wisdom to Hate (Olympic)
by Tim Den

From the beginning, Gorguts have been one of the most original death metal bands. When their second record, Erosion of Sanity, came out on Roadrunner in the mid-’90s, they were so ahead of their time that most people didn’t even get it (including their label, who foolishly dropped them and other heavy weights like Suffocation). Now that the metal scene is wallowing in what they presume to be the “groundbreaking technicality” of bands like The Dillinger Escape Plan and Cryptopsy, Gorguts still manage to sound a millennium ahead. Their last effort, Obscura, was a maze of eeriness, fear, and evocations of the darker side of the human spirit personified by incredibly difficult playing. From Wisdom to Hate is no less impressive, though a bit easier to follow. It’s still filled with face-peeling speed, a labyrinth of time changes, Luc Lemay’s “I’m swallowing my tongue” vocals, and what can only be described as melodies emitted by century-old Roman corpses. Basically, this shit’s frightening on many levels. If the magnificent playing and arrangement don’t win you over, the spookiness of it will. A volcanic eruption (literally) of all that’s original in heavy music today.
(1658 N. Milwaukee Ave. #245 Chicago, IL 60647)