February 20th, 2012
Genre: Atmospheric Sludge/Post-Metal/Doom Metal
Region: USA
This is the first album from Rituals and wow what a debut it is. A mountainous, beautiful sound is captured by these guys that straddles sludge, post-metal and doom with a sliver of hardcore too. There are five towering, atmospheric tracks to be heard (three hit the 10 minute mark) full of rumbling, fuzzy waves of ritualistic dark sludge that cascade through your ears and fill them with cold fog. Each track bleeds perfectly into each other making the album feel even more like one long, lonely sonic ceremony.
Reverb and warbled effects permeate every corner of the album, amassing from a low ambient whisper up to a soaring, loud, teetering fortress of shadowy doom. Big doom riffs punctuated these moments that repeat creating a hypnotic vibration pulling you in, then slow down even further to envelop you in that already dense, oppressive cloud. Vocals take a Seven Sisters of Sleep and Isis approach albeit at a slower pace but with all the ferocity cranked up around swathes of smooth bass and slow drums. A massive shaking boulder of sound that is paced well, hits hard and demands to be played at high volume.
Another surprising and excellent album of 2012, and once again made free by the artists (you can also hear it in full over here). Very generous. Why not support them by picking up the vinyl over at Doom Rock? Recommended for fans of Isis, Omega Massif, Tides, Lento, Cult of Luna, Atriarch, etc.
DOWNLOAD (Mediafire)
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