Goliathan seamlessly blends crushing instrumental doom metal and dreamy post-rock, and they just unearthed some raw, primal, early recordings that date all the way back to 2006, documenting the band's first and most primitive incarnation. The epic, three-song, 37-minute set—Artifact—has just been remixed by Toshi Kasai (Melvins, Red Sparowes, Helmet) and mastered by Gene Grimaldi (Failure, Fantômas). It will be released Oct. 30, digitally and also on limited-edition 10" vinyl.
Through their alternately punishing and ethereal instrumentals, Goliathan tells stories as vast as geologic time itself. Tales of epic beginnings and inevitable ends, of the epochal crawl of continents, apocalyptic future landscapes and, perhaps most impactfully, of nature finally—and violently—reclaiming its rightful dominion over man.
Guitarist and principal creative force Shawn Doster puts it simply: “Sometimes the sorrow is too great to put into words.”
“We want the music to communicate everything on its own,” adds Doster’s longtime collaborator, guitarist Kevin Cogill. “The story we tell is apocalyptic but with a twist. When I’m playing the songs, I’m picturing nature correcting itself in the wake of our destruction.”
Lifelong friends, Doster and Cogill have been playing together since they formed teenage crust-punk group Under Rage back in their native Philadelphia. As the band members grew up and began seeking more mature sounds, the music evolved into something far moodier and more brooding. By 2006, with Under Rage fading away and Doster and Cogill marooned in L.A. due to a busted tour van, Doster began more deeply exploring this emerging sonic path. Aesthetically, he was going for a post-rock sound along the lines of MONO or Godspeed You! Black Emperor, but because of he and Cogill’s punk roots, the sound just naturally came out heavier.
From the start, Goliathan was also influenced by its passions outside of music—their shared love of painting, Doster’s illustrations, comics and short films, Cogill’s knack for building robots. They gathered just as many, if not more, ideas from movies and videogames as they did from other bands, obsessed in particular with Shadow of The Colossus. Like the ancient supercontinents that inspired them, the new songs—and the band itself—slowly, painstakingly took shape over the next decade.
The L.A-based instrumental doom / post-rock outfit has released two tempestuous EPs—their 2017 debut, Awakens, and 2018 follow-up, Albion. And now they've unearthed some raw, primal, early recordings that date all the way back to 2006, documenting the band's first and most primitive incarnation. The epic, three-song, 37-minute set—Artifact—features "The Beast Has Awakened," "If It Could Cry, We Would Surely Drown in Its Tears" and an early alternate version of "In the Path of the Giant, Technology Is Laid to Waste, which also appears on the band's debut EP, Awakens.
In preparation for their release, the songs on Artifact were remixed by Toshi Kasai (Melvins, Red Sparowes, Helmet), and mastered by Gene Grimaldi (Failure, Fantômas). For the cover art (see above), the band also commissioned a new original painting by L.A. artist Jack Elizabeth. The set will be released digitally, and on limited-edition 10-inch vinyl Oct. 30., the vinyl featuring the first two tracks, with "Laid To Waste" available as a digital exclusive.
“Their music is plenty devastating on its own. Though when coupled with bleak and macabre imagery, Goliathan only seems to get more destructive.” - METAL INJECTION
"An exciting blend of doom, stoner rock, and post-rock elements, masterfully put into a musical story." - CVLT NATION
"Emotional dark and drum fills worthy of any stadium." - QRO MAG
"Clearly more interested in developing their own take than emulating that of others." - THE OBELISK
"Top 10 EPs/Splits of the year. Albion is markedly consistent, and a genuinely beautiful sonic experience." - SLEEPING VILLAGE
"A gargantuan juggernaut of melodically-tinged ferocity." - RIFF RELEVANT
"A chunky slab of dense, macabre metal, with statement bleakness, cloaked in gray atmospherics." - ROCK QUEEN REVIEWS
“As a theme or tale, and one fully realized in under a half-hour, Albion works as an ideal introduction to Goliathan. Parts of ‘Albion’ reminded me of one of my favorite instrumentals of all time.” - ZERO TOLERANCE MAGAZINE
Pre-order link: https://goliathan.bandcamp.com/album/artifact
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