A doom band from Japan; what a pleasure! Having the best impressions of their compatriots Church Of Misery, I go on pushing play on this 3-track demo.
Although the sound is not the best for the genre, as it’s a demo recording, this doesn’t reduce the final result at all. The opener "Devil’s Formula" kicks off with a Cathedral-like groovy and doomy riff, which triggers your foot’s automatic up-and-down movement. Naoto Araki’s vocals (who also plays the drums) are brutal, but, for all you traditional doomsters out there, don’t let this deter you; their tone is similar to the early-Cathedral ones but they also hold something from Carcass (as it turns out, before King Goblin became a doom/heavy rock band they were called Pastrays and used to play death metal). Although the groove remains intact throughout the whole demo, King Goblin don’t stay there. They add some slightly more complicated riffs bringing to mind some 70’s progressive rock bands like King Crimson and the like. This shows that King Goblin don’t hide inside the walls of one genre but they have a mood for exploring any influences they carry in their heads. The clue of the demo though lies in the instrumental last track "Red Rum", where the band follows an almost "jazzy" and "free-stylish" way before it moves to a progressive/doom hybrid, and with the strange throat not reciting lyrics but screaming randomly like another instrument. The sudden ending is a drawback though; I would like this to go on for much more than just 5 minutes.
It seems that Japan has made a powerful doom scene over the years and King Goblin are definitely one of its finest examples. Groove and personality in a package from a small band; if they’re a bit lucky too on their way, I foresee a great future for them.

www1.ttcn.ne.jp/~king-goblin/