Gorguts does not have a bad album. Luc Lemay is a musical genius and an extreme metal icon. We’d be remiss not to also say that he is genuinely kind and gracious with his fans. He’s practically the Mr. Rogers of extreme metal, in that we’ve literally never heard anyone say anything negative about him. This may or may not be related to his being Canadian.
That said, something is going to have to be ranked last, so strap in and prepare to let us know in the comments how egregiously wrong we got this. Just remember, with a band this good, it’s easy to yell about what shouldn’t be last. It’s much harder to say what should be.
6. From Wisdom to Hate (2001)
Yikes, we can already feel some fans glaring hatefully at their screen and questioning our wisdom. Honestly, this is an underrated and overlooked album, and clearly we’re just contributing to that by ranking it last. But it came out on the heels of “Obscura,” a record that just blew apart everything anyone thought they knew about extreme music, and the melding of OSDM with prog is great in some places, but lags in others.
Play it Again: “Inverted” and “Das Martyrium Des…”
Skip It: Do we have to do this part? We do? Fine, “Elusive Treasures,” but this choice was made under duress.
5. Pleiades’ Dust (2016)
Supposedly an EP, but its run time is longer than freakin’ ‘Reign in Blood,” and nobody ever complains that that’s not a full-length LP, so we’re stubbornly including it in the main ranking. As far as we know, this is the only metal concept album in existence to be focused on a medieval library in Baghdad that was destroyed by the Mongols in the 13th century. The composition of this album is just mind-blowing. The entire piece manages to somehow simultaneously be angular and linear, aggro and atmospheric.
Play it Again: The whole thing
Skip It: It’s technically a single track, so our hands are tied. There’s nothing we can put here. Loophole achieved!
4. Obscura (1998)
Don’t mind us, we’ll just be hiding in the corner from the outraged prog-metalheads who consider this the Holy Grail of tech-death and can’t believe it’s not #1, or even in the top half. And look, you’re not wrong. This album kicks ass and is almost certainly the most IMPORTANT entry in the Gorguts discography. You know from the opening seconds of the first track that you’re in for a wild ride. Imagine hearing this for the first time when you thought Gorguts was pretty much a straight up death metal band. Your brain would melt. But we’ve got it a little lower because, legacy aside, it feels at times like an assemblage of incomplete ideas, a throw-riffs-at-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks sort of affair. At the same time, if you are even remotely interested in experimental music, and we don’t just mean experimental heavy music, this is essential listening.
Play it Again: “Obscura” and “La Vie Est Prelude”
Skip It: sigh…”Subtle Body”
3. Colored Sands (2013)
It was a really tough call whether this should be #3 or #2. We went back and forth so many times, you can pretty much call it a tie. This album represents the beginning of Gorguts 2.0, with Lemay bringing a bunch of new musicians into the band…and man, he did not skimp on talent. NYC metal gurus Colin Marston and Kevin Hufnagel on bass and guitar? Perfect. There are some slightly uneven moments here, but the back half – actually, the final ¼ – absolutely slays. In fact, if we had to choose one side of one disc out of all of Gorguts’ records, we just might choose Side D of “Colored Sands.” It’s a tour de force; the other three sides are good, but not THIS good.
Play it Again: “Forgotten Arrows” and “Absconders” and “Reduced to Silence”
Skip It: Nah
2. The Erosion of Sanity (1993)
This album really hits the sweet spot. It’s ridiculously heavy, but the prog side of things is starting to come into play as well; there are some seriously complex and weird arrangements here. Total “Master of Puppets” energy. You can already hear the madness of “Obscura” taking shape, and music theory nerds can find plenty to dig into, but you can also put it on when you just wanna bang your head. The fact that Roadrunner dropped Gorguts from their roster AFTER they put out this absolute monster really makes you wonder about what was happening with music in ‘93.
Play it Again: Pick a track, any track
Skip It: Again, pick any track, we guess, but it’s your loss…
1. Considered Dead (1991)
Oh shit, you didn’t see this coming, did you? “But Hard Times,” you’re no doubt thinking, “isn’t that their straight-up death metal record? Why would you choose it over their more experimental stuff?” Well, while we acknowledge that “Erosion of Sanity” was a strong contender, the reason that “Considered Dead” gets the nod is simple: It’s a PERFECT straight-up death metal record. In fact, we’ll go you one better: It’s the best debut album of all the late ’80s/early-’90s death metal bands. We see you, “Altars of Madness” and “Scream Bloody Gore” and “Deicide” and “Eaten Back to Life” and “Slowly We Rot.” You’re all wonderful in your own way. But you’re all chasing silver. “Considered Dead” gets the gold. Congratulations, Gorguts. Now let us all rise for a rousing rendition of “Ô Canada.”
Play it Again: Obviously.
Skip It: [insert clever/playful way of telling you not to skip anything]