Godflesh – Post Self (2017) & Japanese Dubs

April 21, 2020

Wellity wellity wellity, this just fucking came out of nowhere didn’t it? There is always room in the world for more Godflesh so thank the heavens that Justin & Mr. Green have decided to bleed more of that sweet, sweet crushing goodness out into the world. Post Self might be one of the best Godflesh records ever. That is a sweepingly bold statement I know, but the band have expanded on their previous release with all of the experimental freakery that made them so brilliant in the first place. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love the brutal simplicity of A World Lit Only By Fire, but what Post Self lacks in hammering riffs it makes up for tenfold in crushing atmosphere. Plus, the fucking hip hop beats are back, fam – 10/10! This type of thing was hinted at with “Dogbite”, but then scaled back for the previous album itself.

“Post Self”, “Parasite”, and “Mortality Sorrow” are three examples of how fucking stunning hip hop and break-style beats can sound in Godflesh’s music, whilst songs like “Be God” and even more so “Pre Self” are something altogether more 80s Swans than Godflesh has ever attained to, even in their primitive beginnings.

All in all, Post Self sounds everything like Godflesh but also sounds nothing like anything Godflesh have done before. A phenomenal progression, and a glistening, holy yet unholy, head-noddingly good step in the right direction. Knocked it out of the fucking park! A contender for one of my favourite releases this year, without a doubt.  – 06/12/2017

UPDATE: Japanese dubs: Out of all the dubs added to the Japanese versions of the later Godflesh records, the Post Self ones are probably the least exciting. I’m unsure if that is because of the high bar that was set with the album itself, but there we go. Not bad, but not particularly exciting either. – 21/04/2020