GODKILLER - We Are The Black Knights Gatefold LP (Transparent Red Vinyl)

Track A1 to A4 are taken from the first demo: Ad Majorem Satanae Gloriam, recorded in 1994
Tracks B1 to B3 are taken from the secon demo: The Warlord. Recorded in Febuary 1995.

This is one menacing demo. Everything about this just screams pure aggression and malice. Godkiller's first tapes served to prove he was more than just another amateur with a studio in his basement. Ad Majorem Satanae Gloriam is a piece of black metal that's cavernous and brutish at the same time. Godkiller's initial demo is one ominous piece.

Ad Majorem Satanae Gloriam is as ugly and in your face as primitive blackened death metal can be. It preys on your senses and instills aggression and dread as it beats you down with riffs like shotgun blasts and keyboards that add a feeling of unease despite their MIDI setup since it makes you feel like you've unearthed some cursed computer program and are now running it. These keyboard rhythms make up the intro and most of the backing elements. The intro, March of the Miedaeval War sets up a foreboding gothic miasma about this album and makes heavy use of the keys. For the rest of the tape, they serve as backing for the guitars to make things sound more grim and black. About the guitars, they are laid out exceptionally well in that they deliver punishing blow after punishing blow in a way that almost mandates moshing and throwing oneself around. The guitars utilize a timbre with excess crunch and this greatly helps the riffing which encourages violence just from the rhythm alone. Every song is thought out in a way that makes an impact, kind of like Satan kicking you in the diaphragm in a cave deep beneath the earth. Cavernous blackened death metal is done in a nice ugly fashion here and we're better off for it.

Ad Majorem Satanae Gloriam is a demo that shows it certainly isn't amateur night at Godkiller's house. The fact that just one guy made this is doubly impressive. The guitars slug you with their deep, destructive tones and the synths add an element of obscurity and majesty to this. It all comes together into a nasty piece of glorious cavernous hate. Get this demo if you have the chance