AT THE GATES „“Slaughter of the Soul: Limited Edition Double Disc Pack””

Music: Melodic Death
Country: Sweden
Web site: www.atthegates.se
Cool songs: Slaughter of the Soul, Blinded by Fear, Nausea

Earache originally released the limited edition of “Slaughter of the Soul” in 2002. Possibly as a means of promoting AT THE GATE’s upcoming reunion tour, Earache has reissued the album as part of their classic metal series.

The term “classic” does not do this album justice. Many magazines hailed “Slaughter of the Soul” as the best album of the 90s. It has been described as the “Reining Blood” of that decade. AT THE GATES is considered the fathers of melodic death, and one of the inventors of the Gothenburg, Sweden sound. To a large extent, they also (unintentionally) helped spawn the new phase of metalcore. Although the group formed in the late eighties, “Slaughter of the Soul” was the album that brought them great notoriety and laid the blue prints for melodic death and metalcore.

Most respectable metal heads have owned “Slaughter of the Soul” in one form or another. The reissued, deluxe edition is definitely worth a purchase, even if you own the bare-bones “Slaughter of the Soul” album. This version contains the album plus bonus tracks. It also contains an extra disc of DVD material. The DVD portion includes performance in Krakow, Poland, the making of “Slaughter of the Soul,” deleted scenes and a video of ‘Blinded by Fear.’

The album portion of the package features a booklet with lyrics and commentary on each song. It also has covers of SLAUGHTERLORD (‘Legion’), SLAYER (‘Captor of Sin—which is also featured on the SLAYER TRIBUTE), and NO SECURITY (‘Bister Verklighet’). The group also released demo versions of the “Slaughter of the Soul” tracks ‘Suicide Nation’ and ‘Onto Others.’

AT THE GATES chose an excellent set list for their live performance. The group, of course, focuses on “Slaughter of the Soul” material, playing some of the best tracks from an album with no filler. However, the group performs choice cuts from the pre-“Slaughter” days—‘Terminal Spirit Disease,’ ‘The Swarm’ and ‘Kingdom Gone.’ Tomas Lindberg seems to have trouble projecting his voice, at first, but catches his second wind near the midway point of the band’s set.

‘Blinded by Fear’ was released by Earache on their “Earache My Eye” video tape, so many have probably seen it, so not much needs to be said about it. ‘The Making of Slaughter of the Soul’ was an interesting watch. Three of the band members, plus producer Frederick Nordstrom spend thirty-five minutes talking about recording the album. They give an in-depth look at all the various circumstances surrounding this recording. Each member explains how he created the various noises. Additionally, each members gives little-known facts such as Anders Bjorler (lead guitar) playing drums in certain places because Adrian Erlandsson couldn’t make it to the studio.

“Slaughter of the Soul” is without a doubt a Hall-of-Fame album. Earache Records has managed to improve an album without faults. If you never owned this version of the album, now is the time to get yourself a copy. Owning one now will impart an expert knowledge of the album to possess at their upcoming concert with MUNICIPAL WASTE!

note: 10/10

Tracklist

1. Blinded by Fear
2. Slaughter of the Soul
3. Cold
4. Under a Serpent Sun
5. Into the Dead Sky
6. Suicide Nation
7. World of Lies
8. Unto Others
9. Nausea
10. Need
11. The Flames of the End
Total playing time 34:13

Bonus Tracks
1. Legion (SLAUGHTERLORD Cover)
2. The Dying (Unreleased Track)
3. Captor of Sin (SLAYER Cover)
4. Unto Others (Demo '95)
5. Suicide Nation (Demo '95)
6. Bister Verklighet (NO SECURITY COVER)

DVD:
Live in Krakow, Poland, December 30th, 1995
The Making of “Slaughter of the Soul”
Deleted Scens
'Blinded By Fear' Music Video

Line-up

Anders Björler: Guitars
Jonas Björler: Bass
Adrian Erlandsson: Drums
Martin Lardsson: Guitar
Tomas Lindberg: Vocals

Andy LaRocque of King Diamond contributed a solo and backing riffs on “Cold.”