Vancouver’s Thirteen Goats have no hesitation in referring to Capricorn Rising, their second full-length and first for Exitus Stratagem Records, as “an extreme metal rock opera.” According to the band – who we first featured here almost exactly two years ago – the album’s nine songs tell the story of their mascot, Shepherd: a goat-skull-wearing Antichrist who raises an army of animals to liberate the Earth from humanity’s constant wars and greed. Holy shit! If liberation from the stranglehold the deep-pocketed war mongers have on society were as easy as playing the role of breeder and keeper of mascots…I’d say get Eddie, Korgull the Exterminator and Vic Rattlehead in on the mix and let ‘em run rampant on corporations and the military industrial complex!
In the meantime, why not take a spin around the room with Thirteen Goats’ “high-concept narrative” and take on modern metal stylized by everything from Mastodon and Carcass to Cannibal Corpse and Lamb of God. Capricorn Rising will be officially released tomorrow and here’s a brief window for you to squeeze in an advance listen. Says the band about their latest creation: “We’ve spent two years working on this record and the story behind it, so we can’t wait to put it out into the world. Thirteen Goats is here to make death metal horny again and have one hell of a time doing it. We hope there’s something here for all our listeners — whether you want a narrative concept album about humanity’s propensity for violence and how being radicalized can make you a monster, or just want to headbang to some nasty riffs while a bunch of Slavic men scream about goat demons. It’s up to you! But while we hope you enjoy the mayhem we’ve created, we also hope this album brings you a shred of hope in these dark times. There is a lot wrong with the world we’ve built, but it’s not too late to change our course. We believe it’s possible to find a better way together—and we don’t have to let ourselves become animals in order to do it. Horns up.”
As well, the band have a new video making the rounds in the form of the horror tropes-encompassing “Murder Lives in the Heart.”
And, the busy lads are heading out on a quick tour of Western Canada starting next week:
Planet of the Goats Tour – Thirteen Goats w/Fall of Earth
July 19 – Red Deer, AB – The Vat
July 20 – Edmonton, AB – Starlite Room
July 21 – Lloydminster, SK – The Sticks
July 23 – Brandon, MB – Eastside Eatery
July 24 – Winnipeg, MB – Bulldog Event Center
July 25 – Regina, SK – The Exchange
July 26 – Lethbridge, AB – The Slice
July 27 – Calgary, AB – Rec Room
July 31 – Kelowna, BC – Dunn Enzies (venue change from Revelry)
Aug 1 – Kamloops, BC -The Blue Grotto
Aug 2 – Penticton, BC – Clancy’s
Aug 3 – Vancouver, BC – The Fox Cabaret
