GOATMOON
Death Before Dishonour (First Version)

Originally released at the very end of 2004, back in darker times, Death Before Dishonour was the grand culmination of an intense demo period for monomaniacal mainman BlackGoat Gravedesecrator.
During this period, GOATMOON exuded a ripped-raw and punk-oriented brand of Finnish black metal. Even at this stage, however, moments of iron-willed triumph 'n' tragedy - which would later blossom on subsequent albums, in a plausibly refined manner - crop up and create a unique disconnect that, somehow, is entirely Finnish.
Above all, Death Before Dishonour is a distillation of times now long lost, when Finnish black metal was truly beginning to assert its dominance of the underground. Hear where the infamy began, or move on a coward.

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Riding entirely along the melodic wave, Goatmoon have released something so impressive that I had to break my silence of words. Having been on a hiatus for more than two weeks now, something told me it would be a black metal release that’d force me to pick up my pen once again.

For starters Goatmoon hail from Finland and have been belting out black metal since the winter of 2002. Much against those who hate the thought of hatred itself, this band has kept it alive and a little more than that. Two full-lengths, several splits and demos later they have decided to take over your thoughts and make it swing their way which happens to be a route of satanism and chilling breezes.

Goatmoon is a one-man band and all the songs are hatched by BlackGoat Gravedesecrator. Probably his name would be one of the very few things not working for the band. Well, that’s none of my business anyways. Varjot, as the album is named, seeks to flood you with loads of black metal with sheets of folk placed very carefully amongst the tracks. There is not much difficulty in finding rawness on the album as Gravedesecrator knows what is the ‘in thing’. Cold riffs with enough reasons to foster melody makes Varjot a must have.

An otherwise uninteresting 2011 has been perked up by these powerful metal releases and life doesn’t seem to run out of reasons. Although the album could have showcased a lot more variety and taken hatred to an all new level, Goatmoon have rejuvenated black metal in their own way and my speakers cannot stop blaring the tracks from Varjot.

GOATMOON's classic second album, Finnish Steel Storm, back on CD format again.
Originally released in 2007, Finnish Steel Storm is the album where GOATMOON truly came into its own and solidified a unique sound now revered far and wide. Here, monomaniacal mainman BlackGoat Gravedesecrator sharpened his previously punkish attack into gleaming black metal - ever distinctly Finnish, but now with a refinement that truly exuded the triumph 'n' tragedy at the heart of his aesthetic. And while he'd continue that refinement over subsequent albums, it was in this crucial year and on this crucial album where GOATMOON became one of Finland's most lethal (and most infamous) black metal bands. Banned in Germany, experience Finnish Steel Storm again, now with improved layout and on gold disc - forever may that storm roil and rage...

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After more than 20 years, Werewolf Records is proud to unearth a long-buried treasure from its vault: the previously unreleased and once-harshly rejected original recording of GOATMOON’s debut album.

This version, abandoned at the time, now finally sees the light of day on jewelcase CD with a black tray and rare, unseen photos from the era. Pure Finnish Black Metal in its rawest and most uncompromising form.

The material, preserved on the original master cassette, has aged like the finest of wines, the original versions of the songs ripened during the decades. What was once shelved is now damned for release.

During this early period, GOATMOON wielded a savage, punk-driven strain of Finnish black metal, already laced with flashes of triumph and tragedy that would later define the band in more refined forms.

This recording captures a moment when Finnish black metal was rising to dominate the underground, a time of raw violence, reckless spirit, and uncompromising vision. Hear where the infamy truly began, or turn away in fear.