FROM THE CRYPTS - CELEBRATING PAST ALBUM RELEASES in the HISTORY of HARD ROCK & HEAVY METAL…
On October 31, 2006, God Dethroned released their polarizing seventh full-length studio album The Toxic Touch via American Recordings/Columbia Records.
Background:
After touring for Lair of the White Worm, God Dethroned entered Sound City Studios with legendary producer Rick Rubin to record The Toxic Touch.
God Dethroned received criticism from fans who stated that on The Toxic Touch, the band had shunned their extreme musical qualities for a more commercial sounding album. The album featured a more mature level of songwriting from the seasoned Blackened Death Metal veterans, showing that the band were capable of creating catchy, unforgettable strains. Many songs featured unique melodies taking a more dominant role among the bands typical style. The Toxic Touch also featured a more groove-laden approach than the bands previous releases.
Critical Reception:
In his review, AllMusic’s Eduardo Rivadavia wrote; “After ruffling conservative feathers for years with their confrontational moniker, Holland's God Dethroned proceeded to rile up some of their fans with 2006's Toxic Touch -- their most "commercial" album thus far. Still, this was a far cry from constituting any form of sell-out, but rather a culmination of the long-running Death Metal band's maturation from musical provocateurs to seasoned songwriters, capable of concocting truly memorable tunes out of their coarse base materials. And so, even the harshest onslaughts heard here (see 2014, On Wings of Pestilence, etc.) feature distinctive melodies threading their way through the chaos, or else taking a dominant role in a preponderance of more measured numbers like The Day You Died, Fail to Exist, and the synth-enhanced Macabre World -- all of which still crunch and grind far more aggressively than the Gothenburg death metal bands, it should be noted. A slightly more rhythmic, groove-laden approach also makes a dent on cuts like Hating Life and Falling Down but, likewise, observers would have to be out of their gourd to associate any of it with nu-metal. And one would hope that whatever gripes die-hard fans might have against the general loss of extremism would be silenced by the elevated song-crafting throughout, as epitomized by the irresistible emotional climax achieved on Typhoid Mary, which is as disconcerting as it is seductive. More than anything, it reflects the striking contrast of hard/soft elements that keep metal heads mesmerized year after year, and for which God Dethroned have shown an amazing talent over the course of their career."
Note: The reviews shared here are for historical reference. The views and opinions expressed within are not always supported (in full or in part) by Into the Wells. — E.N. Wells
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