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░ ██ ██ Artist: Ruin ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: Drown in Blood █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 2017 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2017-12-22 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Death Metal ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: Memento Mori Records ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Album ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ Hailing from Who-the-hell-knows-where, USA, the █
█ generically named Ruin originally formed in 1991, █
█ only to have its membership swallowed by time in █
█ the slammer and/or sanitarium. Reformed in 2015, █
█ theyÆve sluiced out a swampy sort of old-school █
█ death metal their label promises will be █
█ reminiscent of early Abhorrence and Bolt Thrower. █
█ Drown in Blood, their first full-length, follows █
█ on the heels of a 2015 demo, but, as you may have █
█ ascertained, information on this band is otherwise █
█ rather scant. As a consequence, I enter into this █
█ somewhat blindly, led only by my general █
█ preference for less primordial death metal. Will █
█ this band find a new fan in spite of this? Is the █
█ label pulling comparisons out of their ass? █
█ After what I assume to be a Z grade horror movie █
█ sample, opening track ôCrawling Through the Vomitö █
█ kicks things into gear with some nice riff-work █
█ and an energetic solo before the unnamed vocalist █
█ gurgles and growls away. ThereÆs not a lot of █
█ variety here, folks û this is brusque, primeval █
█ death metal all right. Much of the album opts for █
█ slow builds, but where the tempo does pick up, █
█ things tend to get oddly bouncy, yet it manages to █
█ work most of the time. ôTorture is Heavenö is a █
█ good showcase of this rhythmic variety, as are █
█ ôRancid Death,ö ôSpread Plague Hell,ö and title █
█ track ôDrown in Blood.ö The only real structural █
█ problem is a possible over-fondness for the slower █
█ segments, but this is a very subjective issue, █
█ even in this context. If nothing else, the band █
█ has very good instincts for juggling rhythms and █
█ tempos, with very little of the instrument work █
█ overstaying its welcome. █
█ Speaking of things overstaying their welcome, is █
█ anyone else tired of death metal sampling horror █
█ movies? HephaestusÆs club foot, these meatheads █
█ overdo it here. A full six tracks open with one, █
█ and the otherwise excellent ôSpread Plague Hellö █
█ opens with a bafflingly out of place choral █
█ segment. The album even closes with a medley of █
█ cheesy samples of what sounds to be people being █
█ tortured. While a decent idea for this subgenre, █
█ it wears thin after a minute or so and feels like █
█ padding, given the other samples and the █
█ relatively brisk runtime. This isnÆt hip hop, █
█ guys; knock it off with the sampling. ThatÆs not █
█ the only problem, although itÆs certainly the █
█ largest. In general, the album needs more variety █
█ of song length. The only two tracks that donÆt █
█ clock in around 4 minutes, ôRancid Deathö and █
█ ôDrown in Blood,ö feel padded by samples and/or █
█ boring instrumental filler. ôDrownö also has a █
█ small problem with segments of riffing █
█ soundingàout of place. The riff itself is █
█ excellent, but sounds for all the world like █
█ Deathspell Omega wound up on the wrong continent, █
█ which is jarring, to say the least. █
█ The swampy vocals work well with the overall sound █
█ and structure of each song, but never really stand █
█ out as anything other than effective. Conversely, █
█ both ôCrawlingö and ôRancid Deathö feature █
█ blistering solos that very strongly remind of █
█ Abhorrenceæs first demo, while the drumming varies █
█ from workmanlike to excellent, particularly █
█ standing out on ôSewer.ö But what of the riffs? █
█ HereÆs where things get particularly hit-and-miss, █
█ as long stretches of the album leave me cold, █
█ especially ôNightmares in a Void.ö Despite this, █
█ these death-mongers are capable of dredging up █
█ some excellent riff-work for the more energetic █
█ segments, especially on penultimate track and █
█ album standout ôSpread Plague Hell.ö My gut tells █
█ me this is my own tastes talking, however, and if █
█ you like your death metal with a slab of doom on █
█ the side, perhaps the riffage will better suit █
█ you. The production is very marshy, as expected, █
█ and shapes the sound of the album appropriately, █
█ but itÆs undeniably potato-like. If you have less █
█ tolerance for low-fi productions, giving this a █
█ pass is likely for the best. █
█ In spite of the albumÆs flaws and the bandÆs █
█ terribly obnoxious attempt to be ômysterious,ö I █
█ find myself liking Drown in Blood much more than █
█ not. ItÆs perfectly serviceable old-school death █
█ metal, and while I doubt IÆll revisit more than a █
█ couple songs in the future, the band has █
█ potential. Group cohesion, so often an issue with █
█ bands early in their careers, is perfunctory at █
█ worst, but they have a good ear for riffage at █
█ least part of the time, so I wish them luck in the █
█ future as they refine their sound. █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. Crawling Through the Vomit 4:24 ░
░ 2. Nightmares in a Void 4:21 ░
░ 3. Sewer 4:12 ░
░ 4. The Thirst for Annihilation 3:46 ░
░ 5. Torture is Heaven 4:23 ░
░ 6. Rancid Death 5:09 ░
░ 7. Spread Plague Hell 3:40 ░
░ 8. Drown in Blood 6:39 ░
░ 36:34 ░
░ ▒ ▒
▓ █ ░ ▓ ░
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