Slaughter of the Soul [2002 Expanded] by At the Gates (CD, Aug-2002, Earache)

Album Features
UPC:	745316143125
Artist:	At The Gates
Format:	CD
Release Year:	2002
Record Label:	Earache
Genre:	Death Metal, Heavy Metal

Track Listing
1. Blinded by Fear
2. Slaughter of the Soul
3. Cold
4. Under a Serpent Sun
5. Into the Dead Sky
6. Suicide Nation
7. World of Lies
8. Unto Others
9. Nausea
10. Need
11. Flames of the End, The
12. Legion
13. Dying, The
14. Captor of Sin
15. Unto Others - (demo)
16. Suicide Nation
17. Bister Verklighet - (previously unreleased)

Details
Producer:	Fredrik Nordstrom, At The Gates
Distributor:	Caroline Distribution
Recording Type:	Studio
Recording Mode:	Stereo
SPAR Code:	n/a

Album Notes
At The Gates includes: Tomas Lindberg (vocals); Anders Bjorier, Martin Larsson (guitar); Jonas Bjorier (bass); Adrian Erlandsson (drums).Personnel: Tomas Lindberg (vocals); Anders Björler (guitar, drums, percussion); Andy LaRocque (guitar); Adrian Erlandsson (drums).Liner Note Author: Tomas Lindberg .Recording information: Studio Fredman Gothenburg (05/1995-07/1995); Studio Fredman, Gothenburg, Sweden (05/1995-07/1995).While "Blinded by Fear" begins Slaughter of the Soul with a screwy and interesting semi-industrial percussion loop, about 40 seconds in it becomes all light-speed crunch, riffs, and snarls, so those who never liked thrash in the first place aren't going to be convinced by the goings-on here. But for those for whom such stuff is like oxygen? It depends. Singer Tomas Lindberg actually steers away from the typical Cookie Monster growl in favor of a higher but equally strangled register, while his lyrics avoid bad fantasy poesy, at least for the most part, in favor of more existential crises. If nothing else, he has a good line in influences, with quotes from everyone from William Burroughs to the 13th Floor Elevators. As for his bandmates, nothing here sounds too different from what those who worshipped at the wells of Kill 'Em All and Reign in Blood would have created, but what they do they do quite well. The arrangements are tight and performances strong (guitarists Anders Bjorler and Martin Larsson clearly have practiced their riff action many a time), and the occasional extra touch like acoustic guitar or notable space in the production, holding back at points rather than just grinding things into the ground, never hurts. "Cold" is a good example of this, with a soft electric guitar break about two minutes in, while the instrumental "Into the Dead Sky" consists of nothing but similarly calm guitar and whooshing background noises. Sometimes the contrast can be a bit odd -- hearing Lindberg's howls against nothing but brief flamenco runs in "Unto Others" isn't the most typical of combinations! While Slaughter may not be the best album of its kind, it's definitely better than most, with its own character. ~ Ned Raggett

Editorial Reviews
7 (out of 10) - ...They actually play conventional, melodic hard rock; it's just very very f---ing hard. The guitars on the title track sound like Brian May revved up to the max....this is metal's answer to Hi NRG...
NME

SLAUGHTER OF THE SOUL was a rare example of a band's final record not only being their definitive work, but also the benchmark for an entire genre.
Kerrang