Generally Impressed With Riffs
[Cover artwork by Old Hag] When I initially realized that Arckanum’s first album after a long hiatus—and, technically, its breakup—would be released on All Hallows’ Eve, I devised this rather cutesy and far-fetched idea to compare the entire album to …
[Album artwork / art direction by Joseph Niet / The Creative Corporation] Offering up a textbook definition of “holy crap, time flies,” Black Sabbath’s swan song, 13, was released 13 years ago, on June 7th, 2013. In a curious move, …
If you’re just now catching up, well, we’re just now catching up. Seth Buttnam and I (plus one uninvited guest) are rounding up some of our favoritest grindcore (or grind-adjacent) releases of the past however many months, since we (read: …
[Album artwork by Truls Espedal] It’s 17 albums for Enslaved now, comprising a discography I find exceptionally challenging to wrap my arms around. What’s going on here? Does anyone else forget that the relatively rote and by-the-numbers Frost is actually …
Decades on from its heyday, grunge still evokes cringe-worthy memories. Even a whiff of the genre makes some people gag, and that’s understandable given that many of grunge’s lumberjack balladeers feigned their tortured genius in …
Let’s talk about putridity, friend. More specifically, whether or not you enjoy putridity enough to celebrate it in your life. You may think you do, considering the fact that you once managed to sit through …
The following is a joint effort of two of our most prized idiots. No, not those two idiots. Well, one of those idiots, and another idiot. Anyway, this was written by Ryan and Manny. Thank …
Do you like Grave Digger and Helloween? I like Grave Digger and Helloween. Do you know who else likes Grave Digger and Helloween? Vhäldemar likes Grave Digger and Helloween. This fourth album from these Teutonic-toned …
“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 …
At heart, rock ‘n’ roll has always been theater. It’s performance, on-stage and under the lights; it’s exorcism and exhibition, a transference of raw emotion from performer to audience through words and action. It’s why …
FAST RITES: because sometimes brevity is fundamental. Reaping What Is Left, the third full length from Austrian thrashers Deathstorm, sounds almost exactly like Slayer. And not the clearly-influenced-by-but-bringing-a-little-something-new type of sounding almost exactly like Slayer, …
Tomb Mold took the death metal scene by storm last year with their debut full length Primordial Malignity. Carrying an instantly recognizable sound and more than solid riffing, it’s no wonder the Canadian two-piece appeared …
