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Molekh - Ritus - Reviewed By thoseonceloyal! Wednesday July 19 2023, 9:09 PM

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Molekh - Ritus - Reviewed By thoseonceloyal ! Check it out here at this link: https://thoseonceloyal.wordpress.com/2023/06/02/review-molekh-ritus/

Review by Sandre the Giant

Irish black metallers Molekh are offering their debut record, ‘Ritus’ to us through Bent Window Records this year. They have been described as avantgarde black/death metal, which promises something very unsettling or violent I would presume. Avantgarde in black metal either goes the Arcturus/Ved Buens Ende way or the dissonant, ugly and malevolent direction so we’ll see what Molekh have planned for us.

The unsettling chants, tribal drum and then dive straight into mesmerising, dense black metal miasma within the first minute of opener ‘Yetzer Hara’ definitely is not your standard BM fare. Sure, there are some spiralling tremolo riffs at points, the vocals sound like hell itself unleashed but the suffocating darkness presented in all places is incredibly vibrant. By vibrant I mean, of course, in your face and almost physical. You can almost feel the cloying hands of ‘Cruor Innocentia’ reaching for your throat, while the rattling occultism of the title track snakes around you like alchemic smoke, ready to seep into your very nerves. It feels a bit like Mgla or Dødheimsgard meets Immolation; the atonal weirdness of the black metal meeting the swooning brutality of the death metal on ‘Vocare Pulvere’ fits that description well, while the mesmerising cacophony of ‘Incubus’ is worth the entry fee alone, with the extra additions of an almost mournful doom feel at times.

Named for a bull headed icon from the Hebrew Bible and much related to child sacrifice, you always knew Molekh was going to be something uncomfortable and savage. But ‘Ritus’ is a level above even that. It delves into dissonant riff patterns, thick atmospheres that clog your synapses and vocal incantations of an evil yet strangely orthodox black metal feel. ‘Ritus’ feels like an Old Testament demon, full of ancient knowledge and untapped darkness. Only now is it starting to manifest itself into our world. This album will choke and claw you to death. thoseonceloyal

Release Date: 24 March 2023

FFO: Mgla, Imperial Triumphant, Dødheimsgard

Location: Dublin, Ireland

Short Bio: 'Named by his name. Through blood and possession. Through the ashes of the flame and the abyss of summoning. Seven Dragon heads, seven faces of the beast. Seven rituals of fire, blood, assassination, and hatred. ‘Ritus’ is the first full-length album by Molekh and is comprised of a story concealed within the music that aims to place the listener into a dark, savage and possessed place full of natural evil. The music is intense, gloomy, atmospheric, and heavy. It is a 7-track concept album, running at 40 minutes”.

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