Friday, January 24, 2020

Assumption “The Three Appearances” to be Released on Vinyl





    When Assumption first released, “The Three Appearances,” back in 2014, the album took listeners on a fiendish joyride into dimensions of unfathomable death doom terror. The Italian based band constructed a monumental sounding release full of behemoth sized riffs and deafening drumming, thus establishing themselves as an act to be reckoned with in the extreme metal world.

    Originally only released on CD, the band is now working with Sentient Ruin Laboratories and Everlasting Spew Records to release this monstrous sounding album on vinyl. The release date is scheduled for February 14th with the option to preorder currently available through both labels. Fans of course will be pleased to have the opportunity to possibly own the album on vinyl, however, I see this a chance for extreme metal fans to discover an absolute juggernaut of an album. “The Three Appearances,” explores the death doom world in bludgeoning fashion, while also taking listener’s on a mind bending journey into profound sounding atmospheres.

    The four tracks on this album seamlessly flow together as if you are being pulled into a vortex of endless oblivion. “Moribund State Shift,” is an introduction into Assumption’s catastrophic vision that begins with a burst of malevolence that suddenly slows down into an ominous sounding doom like tempo. Track number two, “Veneration of Fire,” hammers out a haunting chord progression and then about midway through the song morphs into a hypnotic trance like sounding section that I find very creative. The entire atmosphere is constructed in a unique manner to where you never know what to expect next from the band.

    Track number three, “The Three Appearances - Snang Gsum,” is a long piece of music containing a variety of bombastic sounding riffs and drum parts along with these sheer brutal death growls which add a boost of tremendous aggression. Also, the song features an eerie sounding intro piano composition like something out of a horror film. Some of the guitar effects used during the song along with the style of lead guitar playing sound truly out of this world. The final track, “The Non-Existing,” hits the brain with unapologetic force and leaves you listening in awe to the massive sounding assault upon your ears.

    In all honesty, I pre-ordered the album once I saw that Sentient Ruin put it up on their page. Yes, I am biased when it comes to Sentient Ruin releases, but having heard this album when it was first released in 2014, I knew I needed to get a copy of it on vinyl right away. If you want a tremendous and well produced piece of death doom in your collection, I recommend that you get yourself a copy of, “The Three Appearances.” In the end, Assumption recorded an album that I believe will stand the test the time and is without question the band's greatest release to date. 


Listen to the album below:




Sentient Ruin Page:
https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/

Everlasting Spew Records Page:
https://everlastingspewrecords.bandcamp.com/

Assumption Facebook Page:
https://www.facebook.com/assumptiondoom/

Sunday, January 5, 2020

Rat King "Vicious Inhumanity"




    Start 2020 off right with some monstrous riffs and venomous sounding vocals! The Seattle, WA based experimental extreme metal band, Rat King, blends together a nuclear concoction of old school death metal and merciless grindcore on their new release, “Vicious Inhumanity.”

    What impressed me most about this band right from the get go was their ability to write hard hitting brutal cuts of music that get straight to the goddamn point, just like a chokeslam from the Undertaker. There is definitely some experimentation in terms of different tempos and how the band transitions from slow sludgy swamp sounding riffs into a blitzkrieg of grinding chaos. However, the band does not go off into confusing directions by overwhelming listeners with unnecessary compositions that lack any real purpose. There is consistency throughout the album and you feel as though the band did not want to hastily toss together ideas, because that usually ends up sounding like an aborted mess of an album.

    There are nine songs on this album, all of them unleashing a diabolic onslaught of face melting riff savagery. The first track, “Matanza,” is an explosion of brutality from start to finish. The band’s drummer is a maniac behind the kit dealing out plenty of intense blast beats to compliment the devastating guitar riffs. Other notable tracks off the album like “Soledad,” “In Quiet Sleep” and “Chanchito,” really focus on crafting these abysmal bursts of aggression and the band’s songwriting style seems to never lose that unforgiving attitude.



    In honesty, there are similar sounding bands who blend a variety of extreme metal styles, but Rat King’s solid musicianship and no nonsense style of songwriting, keeps you intently listening and wanting more. For example, the final song on the album, “Rotting From Inside,” is a maniacal sounding piece of music with plenty of heavy riffs and ear smashing drum parts. You can hear the bass lines extremely well, so hats off to the person who mixed the album, because those bass parts give the song a major boost of low end destruction.

    Overall, I believe, “Vicious Inhumanity,” is an impressive release that offers listeners some proficient sounding extreme metal music. The band’s style of songwriting on this album did not disappoint and I believe they need to keep making music that does not dick around and hits hard without any remorse. I’ve noticed some young bands fail to establish a clear identity with their music, whereas Rat King delivered their music in a viciously bold and impactful manner. An album I highly recommend for fans who want some brutality to begin the new year!


Check out the song "Borratanico" below:




Rat King Facebook Page:
https://www.facebook.com/ratkingseattle/