Epic Sagas is a fitting title for Ritual’s fifth full-length album. As with most of the outings over this California project’s twenty-five year run, melodic black metal is the style at play. There’s a careful eye for polish and a wintery aesthetic that is sure to remind one of early 2000s Immortal or early Skeletonwitch. On the flip side, this album is also about as generic as that title would suggest.
For starters, the album’s vision slightly falters at the hands of its rather stilted musicianship. The drum beats set up an artificial foundation for some well-played but ultimately stiff guitar work. Nothing is sloppily amateurish and soulless isn’t necessarily the right word either, but the playing could stand to be much ballsier. That said, I do appreciate the heavy bass undercurrent that is felt throughout, and the vocals are surprisingly legible while retaining a brittle rasp.
The songwriting also manages to be serviceable. Aside from the somewhat awkward thrash on “Beginning of the End,” just about every song goes at a familiar mid-tempo pace with occasional clean breaks. Most tracks do run together as a result, but one can still pick out certain highlights. “And Will Be Back” (I swear that title has a word missing) may feature the album’s best buildup and catchiest riff set, but I can get into the memorable chorus on “Perpetual Winter,” the crunchiness of “Pallbearer,” and the symphonic tinges of the closing “Somber.”
Overall, Epic Sagas is an enjoyable black metal album but doesn’t offer much that other bands aren’t doing better. This melodic style is fresher with newer bands like Hoth and staples like Immortal and Varathron are making stronger use of their elder statesman status. It’s clear that effort was put into crafting this album, so I wouldn’t discourage fans from giving it a listen. It just needs a little more fire in its belly.
Highlights:
“Perpetual Winter”
“And Will Be Back”
“Pallbearer”
“Somber”
Originally published at http://indymetalvault.com