Generally Impressed With Riffs
[Cover art by Jef Whitehead] Cognizance’s In Light, No Shape serves as a useful reminder that when it comes to our musical preferences, our whats are subservient to our whys. If, for example, you are a fan of the early …
[Cover artwork by Michael Cloutier] Prog, of course, is known for technical musicianship and songwriting complexity above all else, a reputation well-earned by the early giants of the genre and happily maintained by their progeny ever since. It’s also true …
[Cover artwork by Timbul Cahyono] In the interest of full disclosure, I will admit that I’ve always found the concept of the split to be flawed. It works best when there’s a shared theme or the band’s involved cover each …
[Cover art by Mars Triumph] Petrichor, the sixth full length album from Greece’s epic metal stalwarts Battleroar, commences with the sound of rain and an invitation to reflect. That word, “petrichor,” is a relatively new one (coined by scientists in …
Of all the anomalies to have occurred within metal over these many years—and yep, there have been some absolute whoppers—the phenomenon of Saint Vitus lingers as one of the more unique and underplayed. The band …
“Dear Friends…” Or so begin the always welcome mailing list updates from Sentient Ruin Laboratories with news on upcoming releases, sales, and the usual kind of information one would expect from an independent record label. …
It’s not a secret that the role of a record label has changed drastically in the age of the internet. Nowhere is this more true than in the underground, where endeavors are driven by genuine …
Even the cryptic album title Kings Under the Sand can’t throw the listener off the scent of this one. These German jerks are talking about dead pharaohs. I mean, those are the kings buried under …
Sympathetic Resonance is now rightly viewed as a classic of progressive heavy metal. It delivered the promise of the Twist of Fate EP and completed the comeback of one of prog’s most important duos: Fates …
“Album Of The Day” is a Last Rites Facebook feature we started whose purpose is quite straight-forward: highlight one album per day and say a few words about it. Understanding that not everyone chooses to …
The rock ‘n’ roll business is an unforgiving beast. I don’t know the specific statistics, but it’s obvious that the vast majority of bands see very little success. Among those who do, the shelf-life of …
[Artwork: “Death Crowning Innocence” — George Frederic Watts, 1886] Books are wonderful. Actual books that have weight and paper pages with ink that reveal truths and theories to be studied and assimilated, or that build …
