TAKING THE HEAD OF GOLIATH is a brutal death metal band from Minnesota who formed in 2015. Their latest release, “Futility of the Flesh” is their second EP. This will be their final release as well because, apparently, the band split up last year but are rewarding fans with a final release. This quick EP is just under 13 minutes long and features four songs, one of which is a live cut. The track placement is very curious and unfortunate. Placing a live song in the middle of the studio ones doesn't make much sense to me and kills the flow of this release. With that being said, however, the songs themselves are rock solid.

The music is pretty close to brutal death metal, especially the vocals and sordid atmosphere. The production isn’t something I would call raw but it’s not clean—and definitely makes the songs sound extremely apocalyptic. Upon my research, I discovered this is a Christian band. I rarely mention the beliefs of bands/musicians in my reviews because, ultimately it doesn't really matter to anyone but them. I’m mentioning it now because I never thought a Christian band could be this brutal. Of course, there are a ton of Christian metal bands, and I’ve heard many of them, but none of them are as intense and sickening as this one. The album opens with the title track and the atmosphere is immediately filthy. The riffs build up with a slow, almost doomy, groove. The bass and drums both possess a really great tone—oppressive and thick. The riffs are more intricate than a lot of brutal death and flow nicely.

“Septic Enslavement” opens with catchy riffs and the vocals, which amount of deep growled gurgles (nothing wrong with that!) and a fiery drum performance. There is a slightly technical flair to the song, especially as it approaches its midsection, and it lends the song a special kind of energy. I haven’t heard a studio version to compare it against (and there may not even be one, I’m not sure) but if this live cut of “Neoteric Tribal Barbarism” is any indication, this band was absolutely destructive live. Their performance is blistering and it sounds like they are playing in my living room. This is how a live recording should sound!

The final song, “Cord of Three Strands,” is my favorite song here—I love the bass, it straight up slays. The riffs pummel and tumble their way through on a solid foundation and the whole band is on fire. A surprisingly melodic second half adds a really cool dynamic to the song and is the best part on the whole album. I don’t know the reasons or circumstances behind the band’s split but it’s a damn shame because this little EP represents a band with a firm grasp on their sound and a lot of confidence.