Knowing the circumstances behind The Ghost of a Future Dead, its recording, and the members, specifically, of course, Tomas Lindberg, made me listen to it from a different perspective. Adding on top of this, Tomas finished recording his vocals on the day before his surgery for oral cancer, making it impossible for him to ever record vocals again. He also completed this without the instrumentals being fully recorded. It brings forth many feelings, particularly the fact that some gods are mortal.
It’s very fortunate that At the Gates gives you little time to think before getting into the first track and single, “The Fever Mask.” A galloping melodic death metal riff begins before Tomas’ unmistakable roar. Some on the staff, and I will not provide names, stated it’s “by the numbers.” Does that make it bad, though? No, that’s exactly what I wanted, and if you’re a fan of the band, I don’t see any issue.
A little further into the album, one of the best tracks, with the catchiest hook, of course, is “In Dark Distortion.” In the lyrics, there’s a call back to the first song I mentioned. The drumming of Adrian Erlandsson stands out early behind the slightly dissonant riff. The dissonance is more noticeable in the chorus, but make no mistake, this isn’t anywhere close to a Portal song.
It’s very difficult for me to pick an overall favorite track, but “Ritual of Waste” is also a great one. The poignant drums right on the beat with the riff give it all a sense of urgency. In the chorus, we are treated to some deeper growls by Tomas, and after each chorus, the music is given ample space to breathe, painting an introspective atmosphere amongst the blistering riffs.
On the first listen, I found it quite depressing that there’s an end to the album, almost assuredly marking the finality of At the Gates’ output. It’s another solid melodic death metal riff on an album full of them. With around 2 minutes left, there’s a prolonged instrumental section, proving once again that those gentlemen know how to build atmosphere, juxtaposing it with the poignant riffs, all forming a final decisive, death metal blow.
I won’t even pretend for a moment that reviewing The Ghost of a Future Dead was an easy task. I struggled with it from the first note and wanted to make sure what I say in memoriam to an icon matters. The truth is that many of the songs take similar paths and sound like one another. When listening to the entire album, though, my fears are assuaged. This is what At the Gates was meant to do, and their final (I assume) album reminds everyone in case they had forgotten. I highly enjoy and recommend it. The truth that is shown, countering my earlier statements, is that Tomas’ words and music will live on, so perhaps this god is indeed immortal.
