Naxzgul Rising

Ravager is an interesting band to me because they are involved in a lengthy process of change right now. Antimo, also of Disgorge and a few other bands, is at the center of this group and it is his excellent vocals (improving all the time) that drive forcefully their sound to the forefront of my consciousness. For the most part, and starting where the last album left off, this is hyper-aggressive Krisiun or Angelcorpse-style blackened death metal (this is just a classifying convention, they don't really sound like either band although the influences are of course there), although all kinds of other inspirations bleed through as one gets deeper into the record (there is a section that reminds me of the last Mortuary Drape opus, for example, and others that immediately call The Chasm and Incantation to mind). The last Ravager album "Storm of Sin" disappointed me because I thought it failed to adequately capitalize on the energy and melodic originality of the Domain (this band's former name) material on the split album they released with Demonized on American Line Productions. This album, however, does so - it is, in my mind, a worthy successor to the split album and makes me forget the existence of the debut. Maybe I should go back and listen to the debut again now? I don't know. This is much darker, more openly melodic, and more original than it (going by what I learned from their debut, again) should have been, or what I expected. The riffing is savage, expert, adroit, capable, and the tracks show (in their execution and performance) a lengthy time of composition, patient deletion, editing and reworking. Ravager have improved as songsmiths. Several sections in the various songs surprised me with their writing: the way they were linked to their surrounding transitions or bridges, the ways in which they reflected on other parts of the individual compositions, etc. Also worth mentioning is the rough production, especially the ghostly or "spectral" sound of some of the soloing, which I thought fit this style of music perfectly. While most other bands on Osmose are content to rest on their laurels and rework the elements of their style that got them signed in the first place, Ravager are trying to evolve. At this point in the metal scene, I can only admire them for that. They have created a new voice within their particular genre, even if it is at a level of particulars and subtleties that may escape casual fans of this kind of music. I look forward to their next release, of course, but in the meantime I will be playing this album a lot, as I have been for the past week. This is excellent material, and I hope they continue on this new path of progression.

UA

Erebus Magazine
http://erebuszine.blogspot.com

I don’t know, but at first listening I believed that Ravager were from Brazil or Australia for the massive music they put out on this album. Their style is the impressive blend of brutal death metal with war black, and I immediately thought to the bands in those countries like Destroyer 666, Abominator, Bestial Warlust (Australia) or to Krisiun, Nephasth, Abhorrence (Brazil) with a high dose of Order From Chaos/Angelcorpse influences.

Now, I hope you can understand what you’re going to find in this boiling piece of extreme metal. As you can deduce, the fast patterns are the main characteristic and the down tempos are surely the last thing that our big Mexican think to. To me, Mexico, was famous only for Disgorge or Sargatanas, but now I discovered another great, destructive band. I don’t like labels, but if I must describe their style in few words, I’d call it “primordial war death/black”. Sounds good? Ok, let’s check the music.

The production is perfect for a genre like this that points on the sheer impact of the instruments, always trying to conserve that primordial touch, essential to this sound. We have got the power with unmatched, brutal guitars’ wall of sound and the pounding drums. These one, are really essential in their sound because they are quite wooden but also terribly “full” in the sound, with the hyper dry out snare and the morbid bass drum. The guitars have that grasping touch with a high dosage of treble distortion. They are so similar to those on the Angelcorpse’s debut, so, perfect to play fast and malignant parts.

Furthermore, the singer is vicious and not too extreme. In some points he has the same low tonality of Pete Helmkamp, that is more concentrated to the gloom, evil side than on the pure screamed one. The songs’ length is remarkable for a death/black metal band and they are not boring at all, with a good balance of hyper blasting moments to some more “relaxed” ones, that point on the lead guitars. For example, check the long, doom beginning to “Crest Fallen Of Divinity”, that after the brutal assault of “Foretold” is better to enjoy the speed restarts.

The stop and go are the parts that exalt me the most because they are really intense and completely ignorant towards any kind of melody, but they are able to be catchy too. “Nuclear Vomiting Warcraft” or “Hades Rising” are completely devastating for the intense parts and the sudden slower one with good solos and more obscure lead guitars lines. As I said, the “Crest Fallen Of Divinity” is the only more relaxed song while the last ones are again terribly fast with lots of recalls from Morbid Angel too during the fast bass drum parts and some doom breaks ( “In The Depths”, "Antagonist Grim").

All in all, the perfect soundtrack for the rising Naxzgul to conquer the Earth. A neverending massacre through primordial riffs and mature, intelligent and explosive structures.