Creepsylvania’s (well, Oakland) Ghoul are probably the most fun band in metal. Starting with an appreciation for crossover thrash metal with tongues planted firmly in cheek, Ghoul adorn themselves in goofy masks, add tons of gore metal hilarity, and pepper their releases with in jokes to horror movies, old school heavy metal and gaming culture.
Not too much changes from release to release (except for perhaps better production values), but, you can always count on having a fun time with anything from Ghoul.
That’s certainly the case with Dungeon Bastards, which comes with its own board game adorning the inner gatefold sleeve of the vinyl release, for crying out loud. How can you lose?!
Sadly, I don’t have the vinyl release on hand, so I can’t comment on the repeat playability of the game, but Dungeon Bastards is going to cause you to hit the repeat button. Obviously, Ghoul are similar to Exhumed and Impaled (all three bands share a couple of members, or former members), but they’re their own entity with a thrashier approach to gore metal.
Riffs, a range of tempos, a dual vocal attack, fun lyrical themes, you name it, it’s all there and then some, neatly wrapped up into a tightly played package with good production. Toss in a few samples from nuclear war movies, and you’ve got an album that’s… well, fun.
(released July 29, 2016 on Tankcrimes Records)
