To be honest, I've never heard of Ritual before their release of The Resurrection. Quite shameful, I know, because I heard this band made some pretty amazing stuff back in the 90s. They then broke up for a while and got back together around 2010-2011, with frontman Ian Fleming being the only remaining original member. I just so happen to be friends with Ian Fleming, but that's irrelevant. What matters is that I got a physical copy of this album for Christmas (I can't really afford physical music, so this was a special occasion), and I'm gonna review it!
Unlike other black metal bands, Ritual focuses less on shredding your ear drums with unholy violence and more on crafting killer riffs. One of the best displays of this mindset is on the first song. The pairing of clean guitar and powerful lead guitar remind me of those slow songs made by thrash metal bands in the 80's. (Listen to the Metallica song “One” to see what I mean. There are others like it, but that was the most famous example I could think of.)
Of course, he made sure not to blow all his guitar skills on the first song. The entire album is full of amazing catchy riffs. I heard all the instruments on this album were recorded by Ian Fleming himself, which is amazing considering how layered the music is. On the lower layer you have the rhythm guitar playing mid-paced black metal riffs while the top layer has these melodic lead guitars that inject a massive amount of vibrancy into the music and bring to it a wider range of emotions, as can be seen on songs like “The Resurrection” and “Executioner Of The Elder Gods”.
The drums are pretty simple, mainly keeping the beat, but they're well-produced. The snare is clean and loud, which means there's no sign of clipping. That's a quality you rarely see in modern metal. Bands seem to think that louder is better, but doing that destroys the dynamic range. This album has far more dynamic range than many other modern metal albums I've listened to. As for the vocals, I didn't like them at first, but they eventually grew on me. The agony they exude perfectly complement the somber sound of the lead guitars.
I haven't listened to Ritual's past works, so I'm in no position to make comparisons, but I do know that I love this album. The riffs are catchy as fuck and the album is a fun experience overall. Go get this album now. Pick up some of their swag while you're at it.
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