Metalcatto
Finally, a band with a good name—or at least one that makes me feel like the members take their work kind of seriously. It’s been a while since we’ve had some proper Death/Doom, so why not give Golgotha a chance. I have some illusions for Hubris. Let’s see if I don’t end up more let down than a kid who doesn’t meet a rollercoaster’s height requirements.
Hubris is strange, to say the least, but I don’t mean that in an avant-garde way. The album mixes the softest, almost Candlemass-level moments of clean melancholy and then jumps back to more punishing Swallow the Sun territory without warning. It sounds obvious when described like that, but once you actually listen to it, it feels like two different bands in a car crash where nobody died but somehow managed to scam the insurance company. The transitions aren’t smooth, but they also aren’t trying to be. There’s a deliberate whiplash at play here.
Despite how riff-driven the album is, I’d say the most interesting part is how contrasting the vocals are. They’re the reason things feel a bit strange even when the formula works. One moment you get deep, cavernous growls; the next, clean, almost operatic passages that seem to come from a different session entirely. I’m sure some of you won’t be able to digest it, but overall it keeps you guessing. You never quite know which voice is coming next, and that unpredictability carries the experience through the slower moments. However, there are, as usual, things I’m going to fight about for free. Because why not?
So, how to say this? If you liked the first track here, you’re going to love them all. If you hated it, then you’re cooked. The reason is that structurally and emotionally, the songs are ridiculously similar to each other. It’s almost the same up-and-down, release-and-tension dynamic in every single track. Consistency is taken to a radical level here, and maybe if you hate surprises that’s fine, but a reviewer lives to be surprised. Give me something to hold onto, something that makes me sit up and pay attention after the third or fourth song. Instead, Hubris settles into a groove and refuses to leave it, for better or worse.
Death/Doom with a touch of epicness probably won’t hurt anyone. Hubris gets some points in the creative and effort department for attempting something with this much tonal whiplash. Even if I would have liked a more adventurous approach in terms of song structure, I’m sure Pegah will dig it, and that should be all you Doom Metal bands reviewed at MER should care about. And no, this didn’t make me feel miserable. So wohoo? I guess?
Label: Abstract Emotions
Release date: April 24, 2026
Website: https://golgotha.bandcamp.com/album/hubris
Country: Spain
Score: 3.3/5.0
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