Live music may have been put on hold for most of 2020 and could potentially still be on hold for a good portion of this year in many regions, but one of the positive outcomes of this has been the influx of new music. With bands unable to tour, many of them have spent more time writing and releases are now appearing out of thin air with little to no warning. Gatecreeper’s taken this approach for their latest EP An Unexpected Reality, opting to explore some grind, death/doom, and funeral doom that’s a little different from their previous full-lengths and releasing it only a day after the initial announcement. It’s not only a chance for this established band to explore outside of their usual style but proves to be a very catchy listen that might even grab some people who weren’t into these guys before.
Gatecreeper’s been a band that I’ve liked, but their take on Entombed style death metal with some hardcore influences and occasional doomier sections did start to blur together at times. Hearing that they had decided to branch out and incorporate some different influences for this EP piqued my interest, and the final result showcases they have the ability to step outside of the constraints of traditional death metal and pull it off. An Unexpected Reality gives you the shortest songs that Gatecreeper has ever written as well as the longest, and while the two halves feel like polar opposites, they’re both tied together with that familiar buzz saw tone and Chase Mason’s abrasive growls. The first seven songs make up the A-side and run for thirty seconds to a minute a piece, allowing the band to channel punchier grooves and aggressive blasting that comes in quickly and then moves onto the next idea. It’s reminiscent of Terrorizer circaWorld Downfall and Insect Warfare with just a bit more old-school death metal influence seeping in alongside some hardcore grooves and ups the tempo in favor of blasts fairly often. Despite the fast pace of the tracks there are plenty of stand-out riffs and each one flows seamlessly into the next, with Mason’s growls coming through with an immense amount of power as they tower above the blasting and chunkier grooves.
“Emptiness” comprises the entire second half of An Unexpected Reality and this is where Gatecreeper has the opportunity to really push their existing outwards towards different horizons. You know from the softer opening melody which has hints of Mournful Congregation’s soulful funeral doom that this track is going to hit very differently than much of the band’s existing discography, and from as you’d expect the instrumentation builds slowly from acoustic melody into that familiar wall of HM-2. Once the tempo picks up a bit you get more of a lumbering death/doom type sound with haunting melodies woven in between these moments, all while Mason delivers some of his best growls and higher screams that help the song to retain an abrasive edge even as it explores more atmospheric textures. A song like this that stretches to eleven minutes in length could’ve easily run out of steam and become repetitive, but Gatecreeper pulls it off and keeps you interested the entire time. It may stand in stark contrast to the half-minute and minute blasts of the first side, but the tonality and vocals tie everything together and showcase two very different elements of the same band.
EP’s often provide groups the opportunity to try new things that might not fit within the context of their full-length albums, and that’s exactly what Gatecreeper has done here. After two solid albums where they’ve established a formula for their death metal and refined it, this is a great way to shake things up and both the grind and doom sections have the hooks to keep listeners coming back. I’m sure by the time the next album comes around these guys will be offering up lumbering Entombed style death metal again, but do hope that some of these ideas find their way in as it’s clear they have the ability to pull them off with real substance. An Unexpected Reality is available from Closed Casket Activities.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg
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