Goatsnake - Black Age Blues

By Aaron Sullivan. Fifteen years after the release of their last full length Goatsnake returns with Black Age Blues. While it may have been a little over a decade since any new material. Black Age Blues just picks up where they left off. Almost literally. The opening track is called "Another River to Cross"

By Aaron Sullivan.


Fifteen years after the release of their last full length Goatsnake returns with Black Age Blues. While it may have been a little over a decade since any new material. Black Age Blues just picks up where they left off. Almost literally. The opening track is called "Another River to Cross" and begins with a slow fade in of the ending of the last track on Flower of Disease called "The River". Before fading into the new song. See the connection?

Goatsnake 2010. Photo by Taylor Keahey.

Goatsnake are no frills, meat and potatoes DOOM. It’s all about the almighty riff. Something Mr. Anderson has plenty of. Using his Sunn O))) amps to deliver the thick riffs. Combining with Greg Rodgers and new bassist Scott Renner holding down the rhythm and madman singer Pete Stahl's bluesy vocals to make for one potent slab of a heavy, down tuned, DOOM-fest. A song like "Coffee & Whiskey" starts as this great blues based butt shaker but ends with a riff so heavy Mr. Iommi himself would be proud. This is an album that begs to turned up to 11. I recently had the pleasure of seeing them live and perform many of the songs off this album. They are as good if not better live than they are on the album. Plain and simple this album just rocks. It will have you playing air guitar, banging your head, while singing at the top of your lungs. Honestly if this album doesn’t get you going, you may want to check your pulse.

Goatsnake 2010. Photo by Taylor Keahey.

As of late Southern Lord has been more of a label used by Mr. Anderson to go back and release some of his favorite old hardcore bands, new hardcore bands, and re-issues of some of the labels most popular albums. I say this not as judgement. It’s his label and he is welcome to do with it as he pleases. It’s just nice as a long time fan of this label to see it return to more of it’s roots. With maybe the exception of Sunn O))), no other band embodies Southern Lord more the mighty Goatsnake, and with Black Age Blues they continue to show why they are among the labels favorites.