Gatecreeper - Dark Superstition (CD)

The new wave of American death metal needs a breakout album, and 'Dark Superstition' is it.

Gatecreeper’s third full-length sees the Arizona death metal specialists—vocalist Chase H. Mason, guitarists Eric Wagner and Israel Garza, drummer Metal Matt Arrebollo and bassist Alex Brown—carving out their own path. The band’s first album for Nuclear Blast is more concise, melodic, and memorable than anything they’ve done in the past. “We refined the song structures,” Mason says. “We’re getting better at what we do.”

Think of Dark Superstition as Gatecreeper’s answer to Entombed’s 'Wolverine Blues' or Dismember’s 'Massive Killing Capacity', pivotal albums on which the songs got tighter and more rock influenced. Or even Paradise Lost, who went even further in a rock direction with albums like 'Icon' and 'Draconian Times'. “In the mid-90s, all those bands were evolving into doing their own thing,” Mason says. “I feel like we’ve incorporated that timeline into Gatecreeper.”

'Dark Superstition' was recorded at God City Studios in Salem, Massachusetts, with Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou, who also mixed the album. The record is a direct result of Gatecreeper’s experience, musical refinement, and commitment to death metal. “There’s a lot of bands in our lane,” Mason says. “But we’re trying to create our own.”

Tracklist
01. Dead Star
02. Oblivion
03. The Black Curtain
04. Masterpiece Of Chaos
05. Superstitious Vision
06. A Chilling Aura
07. Caught In The Treads
08. Flesh Habit
09. Mistaken For Dead
10. Tears Fall From The Sky