Ever get that feeling that you should have done something much earlier than when you did? That is how I felt when I finally got around to listening to Rotting Christ for the first time via their latest, Rituals (Seasons of Mist). The Greek black metal outfit took me by surprise with this release as I ignorantly always expected a band with such a name to sound like your typical Norwegian black metal (read as: boring). In this instance, I enjoy accepting the mistake I made and cannot stop listening to this thunderous album.

Trying to pick my favorite tracks out of this album proved to be incredibly difficult as every last one carries its own personality and all are memorable. Alas, we start with the opener, ‘In Nomine Dei Nostri’, which literally sounds like a ritual. The opening has thunderous tom hits on the set while vocals are chanted over the top that sound like a call an answer between a shaman and his followers, hailing all of their deities. ‘Elithe Kyre’ may be the best song on all of Rituals. The chorus sections are absolutely flawless. The chord progression of the tremolo guitars on top of the thunderous drumming gives me goosebumps with every listen. The bridge into the solo is equally as awesome as we here some more tribal chanting/drumming before faces get melted by the solo. ‘For A Voice Like Thunder’ is probably the most black metal sounding song on the album (which also features Nick Holmes of Bloodbath/Paradise Lost fame on vocals). This track is just heavy enough at the perfect tempo that there is no need to toss in a zillion blast beats. The guitar leads are also incredibly catchy and I find I whistle them quite frequently.

Rotting Christ has easily earned a new fan with their release of Rituals. I will certainly make myself familiar with their previous work as well. As for this album, it is an absolute animal that is being released on our world that all fans of metal will witness their jaws hit the floor. At bare minimum, I can see this album being Album of the Month for February. As for end of year lists, it is going to be a competitive year, but I have no doubt in my mind that this monster of an album will still be hanging around.

9.0/10

TIM LEDIN

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