Review by Vladimir on March 28, 2024.

One of the foreign bands that managed to gain respect and interest within the Serbian black metal scene is Godcider, who originally hail from Russia, but later relocated to Pančevo, Serbia. The band has been going strong for well over 16-17 years, but as of recently, Godcider released their fifth album Leviathan on December 23rd, 2023 via the label Journey To The End.

The opening track 'Leviathan' unloads all the ammo like a minigun, with a loud and clear statement that “this means war” and “war is hell”. From the very get-go, it’s misanthropy, chaos and death through intense tremolo picking riffs, blast beats and harsh shouting vocals, killing anything that stands in the way and executing all the prisoners. In the war infested lands that Godcider creates with each song, you can slightly feel the music giving you chills from all the hatred and ravenous anger that flows through every riff. What you will also hear is a very creepy and suspenseful atmosphere in the slow clean guitars and acoustic moments that give you a second of thought before the danger strikes, with the best example showcasing this being the fourth track 'I Forge Your Death'.

The songwriting is rather simple and straightforward from one song to another, but on the other hand, one can’t deny that the consistent style throughout the entire album has proven itself to be very effective. You truly get a sense that this is like a very intense story with terror that constantly follows the protagonist in his god forsaken journey where there is no hope of turning back. Each song conveys a similar atmosphere and feeling, even though it feels like all of them primarily stick to one formula throughout the entire album, but nevertheless it can be overlooked if you embrace this as one linear story that goes forth and never looks back. Surprisingly, even though the album is almost 30 minutes long, it feels much longer than that, due to the dynamics of each song creating such a strong rollercoaster that grabs your attention and doesn’t let go until the very end.

Personally, when it comes to Godcider’s new album Leviathan, I really like it as a whole and it’s probably one of the stronger Serbian black metal releases that have come out in recent years. This band has had a very strong roster of albums, and now with the new album out, the militant strength has managed to expand further. Godcider’s new weapon Leviathan is locked and loaded to take down the enemy frontlines.

Rating: 8.3 out of 10