These Avantgarde Black Metal masters from Japan are back with a breathtaking new album, openly showing the harsh reality that no matter how beautiful you are, you’ll be dead and rot sooner or later.
A new highlight of atmosphere, technical mastery, and meticulously arranged epics of metallic grandeur, Goh-ka, a title with a triple meaning (業火 infernal fire scorching sinners, 劫火 a huge fire that burns down the world at the end of time, and 業果 karma), is the new opus by the mighty Tokyo, Japan-based Avantgarde/Experimental Black Metal institution Sigh, the follow-up to their 2022 album Shiki. Recorded across multiple studios, once again mixed and mastered by Lasse Lammert at LSD Studios, and displaying a stunning artwork by Maciej Kamuda, the new offering by Mirai Kawashima on vocals, Dr. Mikannibal on vocals and saxophone, Nozomu Wakai on the guitars, and with the support of session musicians Frédéric Leclercq (Kreator) on bass and Mike Heller (Raven, Malignancy) on drums, has as its primary theme the Kuso-zu, a series of Buddhist paintings or illustrations depicting the nine stages of a human body’s decomposition after death, created to encourage meditation on the impermanence of life, the inevitability of death, and the detachment from physical beauty and worldly attachment. It openly shows the harsh reality that no matter how beautiful you are, you’ll be dead and rot sooner or later.
Kuso-shi 1, 2, and 3 is utterly ethereal and cinematic from the very first second, evolving into an experimental beast led by the dual vocal attack by Mirai and Dr. Mikannibal; while the guitar lines by Nozomu will pierce our minds in Jigoku-Zoshi 1: Unkamusho, with the thunderous kitchen crafted by Frédéric and Mike making the earth tremble. Then we face the ritualistic Anzenshokon, morphing into a sluggish beast infused with Doom and Sludge Metal elements, followed by Kuso-shi 4, 5, and 6, another song that sounds like three distinct tunes in one, with its epic last part being boosted by the demonic gnarls by Mirai. And after the cryptic interlude Shoso we’re treated to the infernal and captivating Unputenpu, featuring a guest guitar solo by the one and only Mikael Åkerfeldt of Opeth. The riffs by Nozomu transpire Progressive Rock and Metal, supported by the always solid beats and fills by Mike, not to mention its background keys are beautifully haunting.
Jinmenjushin brings to our avid ears another blast of their trademark blend of Avantgarde and Experimental Black Metal, alternating between more progressive moments and ethereal vocalization passages; and Mike then hammers his drums in the best Black, Thrash and Death Metal style in Jigoku-Zoshi 2: Tokatsujigoku, offering Mirai and Dr. Mikannibal exactly what they need to growl like rabid creatures. Kushukankyo is by far one of the most Japanese culture-infused tracks in the history of heavy music, flowing into the (unnecessary) atmospheric track Kuso-shi 7, setting the stage for the band to kill again with Kuso-shi 8 and 9 / Mettaijakujo, bringing forward 11 minutes of insanity, darkness, fury and progressiveness, feeling almost like the score for a Japanese horror flick, therefore putting a wild ending to the album.
From a musical perspective, if you were to place the main ingredients of Celtic Frost, Voivod, Black Sabbath, horror movies and Japan into a cauldron and stir it, you will get Goh-ka. Numerous additional spices such as Psychedelic and Progressive Rock, as well as classical music, are also evident over the album’s close to one-hour duration, resulting in a must-listen for admirers of the insanity blasted by renowned acts the likes of Arcturus, Dødheimsgard, Imperial Triumphant, Enslaved, Ved Buens Ende, Dir En Grey, and Ningen Isu. Moreover, Sigh are waiting for you on Facebook and on Instagram with news, tour dates and more of their unique music, and you can stream their vast discography on Spotify or Apple Music. Don’t forget to also grab a copy of Goh-ka from the Peaceville Records’ Bandcamp, letting their weird and captivating sounds penetrate deep inside your rotten soul. We’ll all be dead sooner or later anyway.
Best moments of the album: Jigoku-Zoshi 1: Unkamusho, Unputenpu and Kuso-shi 8 and 9 / Mettaijakujo.
Worst moments of the album: Kuso-shi 7.
Released in 2026 Peaceville Records
Track listing
1. Kuso-shi 1, 2, and 3 9:11
2. Jigoku-Zoshi 1: Unkamusho 3:55
3. Anzenshokon 6:24
4. Kuso-shi 4, 5, and 6 7:21
5. Shoso 0:56
6. Unputenpu 5:41
7. Jinmenjushin 6:14
8. Jigoku-Zoshi 2: Tokatsujigoku 3:06
9. Kushukankyo 1:47
10. Kuso-shi 7 1:56
11. Kuso-shi 8 and 9 / Mettaijakujo 11:23
Band members
Mirai Kawashima – vocals
Dr. Mikannibal – vocals, saxophone
Nozomu Wakai – guitars
Guest musicians
Frédéric Leclercq – bass (session)
Mike Heller – drums (session)
Mikael Åkerfeldt – guitar solo on “Unputenpu”
THE HEADBANGING MOOSE 