Grave Ritual

Grave Ritual

Morbid Throne

Dark Descent Records

release: 30 October 2015

Kids, grandma has a story for you about death metal. However, before the little story, let me introduce to you this band called Grave Ritual (USA). This band must really, really detest the current state of what people call death metal. This band used to be called “Meathole Infection” from 2006 to 2009, and from then on they have been Grave Ritual. In 2010 the sickos at Dark Descent released the debut “Euphoric Hymns from the Altar of Death.” Now the band is back with this new disease.

What are the fundamentals of the original death metal? Well, there was once a young man from Switzerland named Thomas Fischer whose band was so vile that it was universally hated for being so disgusting. The young Thomas’ vocals were utterly cavernous, like a tortured animal possessed by evil spirits. So hated was the band that eventually Thomas and his friends ended the repugnant band called Hellhammer. Thomas and friends then started a new band called Celtic Frost, which was more refined and more postmodern yet still heavy. Oh, but Hellhammer. Kids, that’s something different.

To Grave Ritual death metal is Hellhammer, Mantas/Death, Autopsy and that filthy metal: it’s not melody, it’s not showing off that you can play the guitar really well, it’s not making the music so that the masses can understand and it’s sure not making the songs palatable for anyone. It’s about making genuinely ugly sounds. Grave Ritual goes so far into the side of ugliness and terrible music that it reaches the other side where it sounds beautiful to other ugly souls, hateful souls that for some reason did not turn it off.

The vocals here are as incomprehensible as it gets. It is low growling that sounds recorded in a deep, deep cave, where animal grunting is the expression. The drumming sounds terrible, too. It’s savage banging away by a soul possessed by the need for barbarian brutality. The sounds coming from the guitars won’t bring you peace nor beauty.

Grave Ritual is not so cavernous because these fellars did not actually use a cassette tape deck to record their songs. It looks like they used those darned computers and a bit of that technology that you young kids love. Regardless, this band is death metal the original way. Lookit, pumpkin, you like this band, you like death metal. Sonny boy, if this bucking bronco is too wild for you, it’s ok, but just know that this ain’t gonna pretty up nothing in your life, boy. Stick around or run home to mama. Now get off my lawn rat now. C’mon, git!

www.darkdescentrecords.com

www.facebook.com/grave.ritual