We recently spoke about both Bhayanak Maut and Scribe releasing new music; two acts who have been at it for a while, and it shows. Another band that’s been putting out quality stuff for a decade? Hyderabad’s inimitable metal mainstays, Godless. Last month, they put out a new single called ‘Architect Of Torment’, and as one would expect, it’s a well-executed and tight metal song. Like the EP that came out from them last year was good, and the album before that was good, and... you get the point.

Most metal (and death metal) traditionalists will probably agree that while the genre does not lend itself to glamour and today’s mainstream definitions of ‘cool’, one thing that always holds true more often than other styles is that artists who have honed their craft and really put in the work end up with the most consistent discographies; as obvious as that sounds, it really does bear repeating in today’s world. And the thing that’s most clearly on display with ‘Architect Of Torment’ is that Godless are just damn good writers and musicians. You have punchy, unrelenting drums from Nikhil Rajkumar. The band seems to be trying a more gloomy and melodic palate with the riffage and general vibe, which, of course, not only suits their palate but enhances it somewhat. That being said, there’s enough clarity in Moiz Mustafa’s guitars and Abbas Razvi’s bass playing so as to not have the song be a muddy, squelchy mess. Godless has consistently been good at making it easy for the listener to differentiate between instruments in their mixes, and this single is not something whose waveform on a DAW will look like a Snickers bar. Add to this Nangsan Lyngwa’s direct and versatile vocals (that have always a surprising amount of enunciation,) and you have what is a song that, while containing the requisite amount of violence that’s mandated by law, is also a groovy and entertaining ( and, dare we say, enjoyable) listen.

Godless is celebrating a decade of being a band with a tour across India and Europe this year. This new single is solid proof of why they’ve been around for so long and have been a fixture in the scene: they, simply, make very good music. Also, the video for the song is them playing it live in Bengaluru for the first time at the Wacken Open Air pre-party – well worth a watch.