GGGOLDDD - "This Shame Should Not Be Mine"

Genre: Avant-garde, Experimental metal, Industrial rock, Electronic.

Released: April 1st, 2022.

Label : Artoffact Records

FFO Lingua Ignota, Chelsea Wolfe, Emma Ruth Rundle, Cult of Luna, Playgrounded.

I was hesitant in giving this album a listen at first, but I am so glad that my curiosity fueled by the album art, the band's name and the favorable press around it decided otherwise.

While the majority of eyes within the metal world were all transfixed upon Meshuggah's return on April 1st, GGGOLDDD discreetly released an album that is as upsetting as it is beautiful, and like most albums with explicit trauma at their core, "This Shame Should Not Be Mine" is sure to leave a strong impression on the listener.

In recent years it feels like there has been a rise in popularity for artists such as Lingua Ignota who address abuse in a very raw and unfiltered approach through their art and in a way, act as torch-bearers inside the world of heavy music for women who have suffered similar abuse.

This rise in popularity signals a shift in mentalities and social dynamics within the heavy music community; one look at the comment section under any article featuring female bands/artists published by a mainstream metal press outlet and you will realise that this shift is very much needed and we still have a long way to go...

Now, contrary to Lingua's approach, the unsettling nature of GGGOLDDD's sound does not rely on intense emotional outbursts and chaotic, dissonant arrangements.

What can make "This Shame Should Not Be Mine" disturbing, is lead singer Milena Eva's airy, fragile and at times deliberately deadpan tone as she delivers very visual and coarse words that feel more like the transcript of her stream of consciousness rather than elaborate lyricism heavily ornated with literary figures of speech.

The cold, contained and deceptively bare and accessible style of instrumentation also plays a huge part in creating this isolated, delicate intimate feel which has a disturbing quality to it given how much of a contrast it creates with the album's thematic.

I say "deceptively" since the arrangements on this album are actually quite cleverly layered and engineered in a way that tricks the ear into focusing mainly on the vocals while there is in fact a multitude of things happening; whether it is layers of skittering electronics, booming synthetic bass coexisting with rumbling organic bass, post-rock/metal guitars as well as various sound effects while Milena adapts her tone to each track.

Overall, "This Shame Should Not Be Mine" is definitely a unique listen that bears a hard but important message and narrative.

I would even go as far as saying that it is part of those albums that are sadly necessary, since although progress has been made over the last decade when it comes to creating a safe space for victims of abuse to be heard and seen, there's still way too much room for change and improvement in that regards, especially in a scene where misogyny's roots linger on to this day.

Foreward thinking both musically and in intent, "This Shame Should Not Be Mine" is an album not to be missed.