Album Review: Deathgoat – Dragged into Realms Below

Death metal at its Finnish finest.

Deathgoat’s latest slab of sonic carnage, Dragged into Realms Below, is a festering triumph of old-school death metal devotion and unapologetic brutality. Clocking in at just under 40 minutes across nine tracks, the Finnish quartet wastes no time immersing listeners into their abyssal world, shaped by decay, dissonance and unrelenting ferocity.

The album starts with “Alkulima,” a slow-burning, instrumental opener that serves as a ritualistic invocation rather than a song in the traditional sense. It sets the stage with unsettling ambiance and a looming sense of dread, signaling that something vile is coming. And then it arrives — “Pestilent Retribution” explodes with buzzsaw guitars, pummeling blast-beats and bile-drenched vocals. 

“Congregation of Disease” continues the assault, fusing catchy, chugging mid-tempo riffs with sudden bursts of speed and chaos. Deathgoat’s knack for maintaining groove amidst brutality becomes one of the record’s strongest features. While the riffs are rooted in the traditions of Scandinavian death metal, the execution feels vital and contemporary, not just merely nostalgic.

By the fourth track, “Dying to Be Dead,” the band starts experimenting more with structure and pacing. The song toys with alternating speeds and features one of the more memorable guitar leads on the record, delivering a thick layer of sludge and sonic despair. Then comes “Compulsive Cannibalism,” one of the record’s darkest moments.

“Monoxide” picks the pace back up with savage riffs and machine-gun drumming, giving the album a much-needed jolt of adrenaline. It’s a short, sharp shock that leads perfectly into “Flashback Psychosis,” the shortest and most frantic cut on the record. At under three minutes, it’s a whirlwind of unfiltered rage but it still manages to carve out some surprisingly catchy guitar phrases amidst the chaos.

The penultimate track, “Clinically Undead,” takes a slightly more groove-oriented approach. The drums slam down with militant precision while the guitars weave together morbid and anthemic riffs. Though it’s a somewhat more restrained entry, it still drips with the same filthy energy that defines the album.

Finally, the title track “Dragged into Realms Below” brings the journey to a thunderous conclusion. It’s the longest and most ambitious song at over six minutes — a sprawling, doom-tinged death metal epic that plays like a descent into some forgotten subterranean hell. Musically and thematically, it’s a fitting end to an album steeped in pestilence and depravity.

Its balance of tradition and freshness sets Dragged into Realms Below apart. While Deathgoat draws influence from early ‘90s Finnish and Swedish death metal, their songwriting has a modern edge and a confident flair that keeps things from feeling derivative. The production is raw but powerful — muddy enough to feel authentic, yet sharp enough to make every riff and blast count.

Dragged into Realms Below is a record made by death metal fans for death metal fans. It doesn’t seek to reinvent the genre; it aims to reaffirm and celebrate it in all its ugly, rotten glory. And in doing so, Deathgoat has delivered one of the year’s most uncompromising and satisfying offerings in extreme music.