What does GGGOLDDD sound like?

Industrial machine gun dark rock verging into post-metal.

The review GGGOLDDD – This Shame Should Not Be Mine

As a fan of music that creates intense reactions, I found an instant affinity with GGGOLDDD and her brand of music. I call it machine gun rock. Moving from bass-driven minimalist verses we explode into frenzied pummelling of guitars and drums. Each instrument is highly strung. Taut into ruin at times. When you free chaotically from one extreme to the other, it’s difficult not to ride its emotive wave.

These extremes are the central musical theme of the album. Take the stunning “Strawberry Summer” as a prime example. From brooding, angry, snarling verses built on a bass hook, the song ignites electric for the choruses. “Like Magic” channels similar energy, running thrash percussion alongside frantic strumming of a much slower melody. It is intense whereas “Spring” is like a Chelsea Wolfe sibling song. Here the vocals are left ethereally dusting with a sub-bass riff. Then dramatic dark rock power chords surge in for big interludes.

GGGOLDDD doesn’t always resort to this small/big 180 kick. “Invisible” is one of the standout tracks and follows a more traditional build and fall with stages to it. It also contains some extremely catchy bendy synths to add an industrial element to the rock. This steampunk or industrial edge is present across the album’s percussion. Kickbeats machine themselves into fits and starts. When live drums are in session there’s either a kickdrum, Tom, snare or a combo of all three each all parts of a beat and a bar! Its aggressive mechanical edge works a treat.

In many ways, I view this album like a war machine. Even the creepy but utterly captivating “I Won’t Let You Down” feels like a war game. A war game of love, trust, independence and interdependence. These themes fly across “This Shame Should Not Be Mine”. This hits home hard with the horror grunge anthem “Notes on How to Trust”. Clever hooks, pacey delivery and an apocalypse wolf moon vibe all merge to create a superb track. It’s followed later on by the title track which carries the entire album’s theme. This is an album of defiance and resistance too, as GGGOLDDD’s music video for it shows. Moving on from abuse, you often carry shame with you and this is something I know from personal abuse survival. Being able to shed this abuse like a snakeskin is key and the title track is the antithesis of this idea.

“This Shame Should Not Be Mine” is a superb album drenched in dense ideas and clever production. It also carries a powerful and important message for anyone who has survived abuse. That’d be nothing without the commanding and confident performance of a warrior musician and GGGOLDDD leads her songs of war into battle with aplomb.

Recommended track: Strawberry Summer

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