Band:	Pig Destroyer
Album:	The Octagonal Stairway
Style:	Grindcore
Release date:	August 28, 2020
A review by:	Troy Killjoy

01. The Octagonal Stairway
02. The Cavalry
03. Cameraman
04. News Channel 6
05. Head Cage
06. Sound Walker

Pig Destroyer is a household name in the grind scene, and with that comes certain expectations: namely, to brace for something completely unexpected. And probably not even grind.

Renowned for their penchant for experimentation, The Octagonal Stairway is a logical followup to the Mass & Volume EP, itself a branching out of sorts into the realm of sludge and drone doom: an understandable undertaking given the time of recording placing it around the release of the polarizing Natasha EP. And while it fails to live up to those heights and levels of momentary brilliance, there is still a small place for this mini-album in the band's discography, though it is littered with glaring flaws from the outset.

Prior to even listening to this, a problem immediately presents itself with the track listing. "Octagonal Stairway", "The Cavalry", and "The Cameraman" have all been previously published as singles, and "Head Cage" is a title already used on their 2018 full-length, a far more conventionally structured pseudo-grind album with heavy emphasis on the -core aspect. Sure, it's sensible to compile these tracks into one readily available format for the sake of convenience, rather than impossibly rare-to-find b-side fillers floating around in the digital cosmos, but it also doesn't exactly instill hope in a reviewer to expect something innovative or inspired with 11 of the 25 minutes' worth of material preceding this release. At the very least, they're quintessential Pig Destroyer tracks: somehow simultaneously cacophonous, groovy, grimy, and filled with energy.

Speaking of 11 minutes, the album's closing track, featuring Igor Cavalera and his Petbrick noise influences, drones out its industrial ambiance, pulsing electronic drum repetition, and what sounds like backmasking vocal effects. It establishes an eerie atmosphere and misanthropic vibe to end things on, but it's difficult to attach much value to the guest feature as Blake Harrison is easily capable of handling these tasks independently, as he does with "News Channel 6" and "Head Cage" (about 3 minutes combined of similar, but less evocative noise). Cavalera's utility as both a drummer and DJ extend well beyond the simplicity on display here, but at least they created something purposeful that adds value to what is essentially a scattered collector's item really only meant for fans of the band.