Monarchy

After a shaky debut, Rivers of Nihil released their sophomore album in 2015. This album marks a more refined direction of the band's instrumentation and songwriting, be it in technicality, progressive elements, or atmospheric sounding. Gone are the deathcore elements on their prior releases, and now it is just pure technical and progressive death metal, comparable to genre staple albums like Cosmogenesis and Earthborn Evolution.

This album is different from most technical death metal I've listen to, unlike albums like Omnivium or The Aura, this one exudes a very powerful and consistent atmosphere that feels like you are lying on your back in the driest, dustiest desert imaginable, being cooked alive by the scorching sun coming down, exactly as the cover advertises. This is accomplished by the occasional calm and acoustic section that lets the listener take a breather and take in everything that has occurred prior to said calm section. This atmosphere is also conveyed in the lyrics, being a concept album and all, alluding to a decaying earth where the sun has dried everything, only a small fraction of humanity has managed to avoid extinction, and have become a sun-worshiping theocracy that gradually collapses into a dictatorship/monarchy.

The album begins with an intro track, as if the soundscape is showcasing us what happened between the end of Conscious Seed and the start of Monarchy, before blasting into the second track that begins with Jake narrating/growling the desolation in words. The first half of the album is your standard technical death metal songs, full of intricacies and impressive musicianship, but when the title track begins, it marks a significant shift where progressive elements become more prominent, and the arrangements really open up. The songs get longer, the guitars now have these atmospheric tremolo picks that blend into the background, which give them an ethereal atmosphere that eerily sounds like keyboards from a DSBM release, and the songs now take on more diverse structures to separate themselves from the first half of the album.

The instruments here are also pretty interesting, throughout the album there are multiple, competing rhythms happening most of the time, but it never sounds haphazard, and more of a choreography made out of noise, it is not supposed to work, but it does. One technique I like here is during some choruses where one of the guitars (or both guitars depending on the song) fade into the background and provide an atmospheric backdrop, while the bass, drums, and vocals form the bulk of the audio, an example occurs during Circles in the Sky. The vocals here are pretty unusual for technical death metal too, instead of being a low growl or a high register that sounds like a goblin (although the bassist, Andy Biggs does growl in a high register to complement the lead vocalist), Jake Dieffenbach opted for a mid-ranged roar that sounds surprisingly intelligible, I can understand most of the lyrics on the first listen, more of a narrator to a dystopia or post-apocalyptic fiction and less of a death growling demon. The drums here are pretty impressive too, but that just comes with being in a technical death metal band. But the bass here... It deserves a special mention, besides doing bass solos occasionally, Andy Biggs also runs his basslines in parallel of the rest of the band, creating a rhythmic backdrop that further reinforces their sound, and sometimes even carrying the song forward with the vocals when the guitars decide to take a backseat and provide an atmospheric backdrop.

Songwriting wise, this album combines both technical and progressive death metal songwriting to create something unique and atmospheric. While the first half of the album is more technical death metal oriented where its a 80/20 split between tech and prog, the second half of the album (title track onwards) manages to balance both technical and progressive songwriting equally without one overpowering the other, allowing the songs to slow down and express themselves without tiring the listener out.

The production is pretty okay, coming out at a decent DR6, but considering most death metal records back then are usually DR2-4, I'd say it is a job well done for whoever did this at Metal Blade. The songs were mixed to let the song breathe and carefully express themselves, and the bass is pretty prominent too, so that is a plus.

This album is a standout technical/progressive death metal album that anyone interested in the genre should check out, it marks the inclusion of progressive elements that would not take over the band until Where Owls Know My Name where the technical death metal aspects of the band are removed.

Highlights: Sand Baptism, Monarchy, Terrestria II, Circles in the Sky+Suntold (it's another Siamese twin song)

After a short break, the band finally released their second full-length album and at this point the style of the album is pretty obvious: technical death metal with progressive elements. This is the album that finally made the much needed steps and got rid of the deathcore elements completely (and no I am not counting the vocal style). Not only is this a improvement from the already good The Conscious Seed of Light, but it's also their first album that can compete with top tier tech death bands such as Obscura.

The band's ability to play their instruments is obviously there, they already proved it on the previous record, but this album takes it to a whole new level. Right at the start an instrumental song starts playing just like on the last release, but this time we don't get the same good transition to the opening song that we got from Terrestria I: Thaw on the previous album. While on The Conscious Seed of Light the first 2 tracks were the strongest, Monarchy gets stronger as the album progresses. It's not that the first 2 songs are bad, in fact they are really aggressive in terms of drumming and the guitar riffs (e.g. Perpetual Growth Machine). Yet as soon as Sand Baptism starts playing the album starts to rise to a whole other level. The progressive elements start to get more frequent and an atmosphere starts building up slowly but surely. From Ancestral, I it totally gets to the top: the album gets an atmosphere that previous records couldn't manage to build up and this is mostly thanks to the occasionally made calm and sometimes even acoustic parts of each song, and even though it has a lot more progressive and atmospheric elements going for it, it doesn't lack the brutality that we all know and love about tech death. It's also worth mentioning that this album is 50 minutes long and it managed to stay entertaining for the whole time (which was near impossible for the last record even though it was only 40 mins long).

While this is the first time they managed to top their second EP, this isn't a perfect record. As I mentioned while the first 2 songs (+ the intro) are relatively heavy, they are not heavy enough compared to the previous album's songs and they also lack the progressive elements on the later tracks. These 3 songs don't offer anything, but apart from them the album has no other major mistakes.

Overall this album is the very first time that the band made something that's not deathcore and manages to compete with other talented tech death bands. We could say this is their magnum opus, but that would be wrong. The band has come a long way from being a deathcore band, but their journey is not over yet...

The highlights of the album are: Ancestral, I , Circles in the Sky and Monarchy.

The right Rivers of Nihil product that displays who they are. Monarchy is the band’s true debut. They can be progressive, technical, brutal, and atmospheric; all within death metal. With each track being atmospheric, the elements of technical/progressive death metal are consistent, while some even offer brutality from start to finish. It’s important to note how significantly they improved once again. It took them to record a second EP to showcase their improvement; slide off track a little with their debut and returned with some unwarranted chugging. Now, it required a second studio album to fulfill that obligation.

The song structures, the mix, and the lyrics are fantastic for this 50-minute product. It’s a bliss or a trip that can make you happy, sad, excited, afraid, hallucinate or imagine. The atmosphere of this record gives you this glimpse of entering a world of despair and loneliness, swimming in the rivers of the wastelands (or should I say the Rivers of Nihil) no pun intended)). The title track is the prime example of that. Circles in the Sky’s intro sounds like something you’d hear from Rush, but it will put you in this mindset of rage and war, something that would fit in a video game. It’s very calming. I would also add Suntold (great metaphor).

The guitars fill this record with strong melodies that build a melodic atmosphere, with pretty solos, excellent guitar compositions and great technical instrumentation. The bass helps in filling this desolated atmosphere of nature, and the layers of it is why it’s my favorite part about this record; incomprehensible goosebumps! I honestly can’t express how good the drums are. One thing for sure, they sound much more blasting. I think Monarchy is where the lead vocalist developed his voice to the fullest. He doesn’t sound like an average death-growler. Here he growls in “story-telling horrors” and expressing the lyrics the way they should be expressed.

The downside of this record is that its first half isn’t remarkable as the second half. Heirless was a dull prelude, and the rest of the songs (other than Sand Baptism) sounded... normal. They still have quality, but they don’t sound exciting. Monarchy originates the core sound of what Rivers of Nihil would later become. The band likes all sorts of music, and they made the ultimate record. The best tracks are the last four.

This is River of Nihil's sophomore album. I gave their debut, The Conscious Seed of Light a spin back in 2013. I enjoyed the first track which had some neat Morbid Angel-esque elements, but the rest of the album left me cold. Seeing the glowing reviews for the second album made me curious to see if the band has indeed taken their music to more impressive heights.

The answer is yes, but also no. It is no doubt a technically impressive collection of songs, the music complex as it writhes out of the speakers, demanding my attention. Yet even as it is a solid blow to the skull, with a powerful production and lots of neat little touches scattered around, the album fails to captivate me. Like so many technical bands before them, River of Nihil are like a set of very talented artists, but they can only paint by numbers. Isolated, each riff, each line of melody, each breakdown, each drum fill are dull as the proverbial ditchwater. It's in the coming together of elements that River of Nihil show their penchant for complex arrangements, but is also here that the album starts to fall apart for me - it becomes if not soulless, at least not music that makes me feel anything.

I mean, there is metal to make you happy, sad, angry, depressed, suicidal, strong, etc etc but Monarchy leaves me listening to people who are really good on their respective instruments, without ever touching me in that special place (no, I'm not referring to the G.spot). The band comes the closest on the eighth track, "Terrestria II: Thrive" (despite its lifeless title), where the music is given room to breathe (almost evolving into progressive metal as opposed to technical death metal) despite being as complicated as the rest of the album. It weaves effortlessly between acoustic guitars with soft, beautiful solos and fast, aggressive metal parts, and manages to display all the disparate elements of the band's sound cohesively, organically, making it the only piece on here that feels like a true song.

One negative element that overshadows everything so carefully built on Monarchy are the vocals. About half the time the vocals are shouted in a monotone manner that reminds of me of metalcore (am I allowed to use that word), often in parts where the band also musically drift close to that dreaded genre; whenever the vocalist buckles down and employs more regular death metal growls, such as in the first half of "Circles of the Sky", it's palatable.

There are a number of breakdowns on this album that get old the moment I hear them, and which mar otherwise clever songwriting and interesting use of acoustic instruments and keyboards. Some solid melodies come to the fore on the latter half of the album, but for the most part the band relies on unmemorable riffs and predictable hooks, even as they can sound progressive as hell the next second. It definitely is a weird album and hard to review; I suspect a few more spins would make me appreciate it more, at least the more progressive elements. In conclusion, there's too much Pantera and too little Morbid Angel for my personal tastes to give this album a glowing review. I do recognize the obvious abilities the band is in possession of, but I still find Rivers of Nihil a bit directionless, dare I say too modern. Your mileage, as always, may vary though - if you don't mind a lot of breakdowns and assorted elements mixed up in your technical death metal you could probably add another twenty or so percent to the score. I feel bad about giving this album such a low score, but music is, as always, subject, and despite the inherent qualities I find myself mostly bored. They definitely should give more room to melody and atmosphere (the slightly eerie, beautiful last minute of "Suntold" shows that the band is definitely capable of creating compelling music without resorting to overly technical or complex arrangements).

I've long hypothesized about a day when a new wave of bands would take what the ultra-tech bands of the early 2000s were doing and infuse it with superior songwriting, and I think that day is finally here. Monarchy is incredibly modern in it's approach to technical death metal, following the trend of increasing progressive elements in the genre, as well as a strong atmosphere and the aforementioned songwriting improvements. These musicians are all ridiculously talented, with my particular favorite being the bass player, who pops up often throughout the album and always impresses.

I never got much into their debut album, The Conscious Seed of Light, but the lyrical concept of representing the four seasons intrigued me from the start. Monarchy is Summer, and while it's more of a lyrical theme, the songs often create a stifling and suffocating atmosphere that accurately depict a sweltering desert setting. The songs are appropriately technical within the confines of the song, which is where I started this review. Rivers of Nihil are what could be considered 3rd generation death metal, directly influenced by the lot of bands in the early 2000s that took technical and brutal music to monotonous extremes with a lack of real memorability. They know how to write a good song and have balance between technical and progressive elements, but their actual skill level is outstanding. Doing a track by track review isn't the best way to absorb the album, but I will say Monarchy is my favorite track of the bunch as that track is flawless, and the rest range from very good to awesome. The focus is on the songwriting of the album in it's entirety with plenty of softer moments that allow the death metal sections to really shine.

I'm reminded a lot of The Flesh Prevails by Fallujah minus the deathcore elements, as well as Job For a Cowboy's Sun Eater although far superior. This very well could've been my favorite album of 2015, except for that damned Cattle Decapitation. I could not have been more surprised and I hope this is a sign of good things to come from these young men and the genre in general. Even if you hated the debut album this is a must-listen and I can only hope they keep this quality up for their Fall and Winter albums.

I had decided to listen to this album on a whim, to be perfectly honest. I'm not a huge fan of technical death metal to begin with, but the beautiful Dan Seagrave artwork drew me in and so I gave this record a shot. I had actually heard Rivers Of Nihil's previous release "Conscious Seed Of Light" back when it came out in 2013. I couldn't really get into it though. The production was kind of weird, the vocals were subpar, and the songs overall were just not very interesting. However, even then, I could tell that for all the issues I had with the record, Rivers Of Nihil had something in their sound that set them apart from their contemporaries.

Fast forward two years, Rivers Of Nihil releases their sophomore album "Monarchy" via Metal Blade Records. This album fixed all of the problems that I had with the last one. For one, the guitar work is monstrous. There are riffs galore on this thing, tight rhythms and melodies, and even some memorable solos, which I find to be fairly hard to come by in this sub genre. The guitars are complimented well by some really groovy, pounding bass lines that do an excellent job navigating through the bizarre song structures found on this album. Additionally, the drums are pretty versatile on this thing. While many technical death metal drummers find themselves recycling four or five mechanical sounding blast beats throughout the songs they play on, Rivers' new drummer Alan Balamut does a great job alternating between some really unique jazz beats and more traditional blast beats. These proficient but creative players are really what make this band stick out to me. But also, many of these songs are just really catchy. Especially songs like "Ancestral, I", "Sand Baptism", and "Monarchy" just have super catchy passages that I wouldn't quite call choruses, but parts that are repeated throughout the songs. Jake Dieffenbach's vocals are also quite responsible for said catchy parts. He has a growl that sounds kind of like a deep, injured bellow of a werewolf or something. It's as if his throat is caked with mud and sand. But that doesn't stop him from yelling pretty damn loudly on this record.

Conceptually, Monarchy tells a story of some ancient civilization living under some sort of Monarchy that worships the sun. It's kind of hard to follow if I'm being perfectly honest, but really this record is also the second in Rivers' four album project of making a record to represent each season. This one represents summer, which can definitely be inferred from the lyrics and artwork. All and all, this is a sick album. I can't wait to see what else these guys cook up in the future.