Back in June, Godflesh released their first new music in 13 years, the ‘Decline & Fall’ EP, resurrecting a tradition of leading each album with taster of what's to come.
‘Decline & Fall’ was pretty much a dream come true. It was resolutely Godflesh, but utterly modern and forward-looking. It was, frankly, brilliant. So does ‘A World Lit Only By Fire’ stand up, too? C’mon, seriously, what kind of a question is that?
Opener 'New Dark Ages' sets the tone with its enormous one-chord groove, and from there on in it’s a maelstrom of focused noise. The songs are blunt, machine-like and brutal.
Although the melodic aspects that permeated much of 2001’s underrated ‘Hymns’ appear sporadically – Justin Broadrick, one of two members beside JC Green, usually finds a more appropriate home for them in another of his projects, Jesu – what’s most apparent here is new lease of creativity. ‘Carrion’ is a horrific robotic monster, ‘Curse Us All’ is incredible in the effectiveness of its simplicity, and ‘Forgive Our Fathers’ takes the band to epic new levels.
‘A World Lit Only By Fire’ is a brave record. There’s nothing nostalgic here – it’s the sound of a band reborn, rather than one reformed. And yes, it’s well worth the wait.
8/10
Words: James Barry
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Listen to ‘A World Lit Only By Fire’ via Deezer, below…