GOATMILKER- Gods & Monsters

RELEASE YEAR: 2026
BAND URL: https://goatmilker.bandcamp.com/album/gods-monsters

These musically talented and friendly chaps from Bergen surprised this scribe greatly by means of their original-sounding, self-titled debut offering from 2025, which blended progressive metal, thrash metal, and subtle touches of stoner rock and classic heavy metal to great effect. It need also be mentioned that I had the immense pleasure of witnessing them live on stage back in June this year and that they absolutely killed it and left us all wanting for more, which led me to conclude that they are even better in a live setting than they are on record, which is saying something. In short, I frigging dig these guys and their charming take on melodically strong, cleverly written metal music.

Where do we stand on theirs upcoming EP titled Gods & Monsters then? Those of us who attended the aforementioned gig at Hulen in June were rather fortunate in that the group previewed one or two of the tracks that appear on this splendidly dynamic slice of prog-inclined metal that memorable evening, and listening to the compositions here is a vivid reminder of why they were so well-received when aired in a live setting; they come across as small journeys filled with unexpected turns and surprises. In some ways, one could draw parallels to such acts as Mastodon and Voivod in terms of quirky ideas and unconventional song arrangements, but all those galloping riffs remind me ever so slightly of early Iron Maiden for whatever strange reason, and a couple of the more edgy and hard-hitting passages bring to mind Sabbath around the time of Sabotage. Even subtle nods to early Soundgarden appear on the odd occasion. Compliments all around then. More than anything though, the good people of Goatmilker appear to have properly carved out a nice little musical niche of their own, and the EP is arguably more epic in scope than what came before while retaining the outfit’s unique identity, charisma, and trademarks.

These sparkling new tunes of theirs are rich in atmosphere and harbor heart and soul while also celebrating the sheer joy of playing eclectic and varied heavy metal with your mates. One to check out.