Max Cavelara‘s work since Sepultura has been major hit and miss with me, so when I found out he was doing something with his son, I can’t say I was particular excited, but holy moly… First thing that hit me was that snare… good God that snare. Easily the boomiest snare I have heard in a while, especially when those thrash beats kick in. I was majorly caught off guard at first but as I started to settle in, I began to love it. This is some trudgey, dirty, old school shit and I’m a fan. There are plenty of riffs throughout this album that were worthy of the ‘stanky’ riff face. Nothing incredibly groundbreaking or really genre-defining but just some good, old school, punky death metal.

My averse reaction to the production started to subside heavily when I was able to deduce the context, it’s absolutely the right decision here. I would say the bass on the snare can come down just a bit, it has more than the kick, but other than that the drums, probably more than anything set the grimey, sludgy vibe for the album that I love.

Guitars with all of their skanky riffs don’t have too much to note in terms of production. They also have a more ‘vintage’ tone but nothing too shrilly or harsh like in older death/ thrash metal and that is a plus. Igor can riff like his dad and I really hope its both of them doing the rhythms because if it is, they are absolutely tight, but still big and wide enough to fit the retro-ish production it seems like they’re aiming for. Nothing crazy or technical but that’s the point, they go from evil and trudgey to punky and ferocious with ease.

Igor‘s voice sounds a lot like his dad and I am loving it, there were times that were obvious and others I had no idea who was doing what vocally. Political lyrics are in abundance which is something I feel is severely lacking and always appreciate when an artist takes that plunge, even if it’s something I personally disagree with. Just perusing things like youtube comment sections or other social media, you can see how divided it can make a fanbase in this day and age. When I was growing up a long 20 years ago, it seemed
like it was everywhere and now people on all sides seem to be hot and bothered by the smallest things and bands seem to take a lot more flack for going the political route, so I give that decision by G.A.A.D. a big thumbs up.

Go Ahead and Die has a memorable riff on every song, but the songs themselves aren’t very memorable, although I get the impression they aren’t meant to be. Previous works and metal ‘celebrities’ aside, G.A.A.D. deliver a solid throwback-esque release with passionate political lyrics, grimey, dirty riffs and punky thrash and old school blast beats that will put the taste of dive-bar PBR in your mouth as you reminisce about your local extreme metal venue. I hope whoever is reading this is able to go see shows again because this release is making me miss it heavily.

Review by: Tyler

Rating: 7/10

Tracklist:

1. Truckload Full of Bodies
2. Toxic Freedom
3. I.C.E. Cage
4. Isolated / Desolated
5. Prophet’s Prey
6. Punisher
7. El Cuco
8. G.A.A.D.
9. Worth Less than Piss
10. (In the) Slaughterline
11. Roadkill