Get ready for a double dose of black metal in the form of the new split EP between Vancouver black metal/crust purveyors Wormwitch and black-thrashers Sadistic Ritual, streaming now via Decibel.
The split features three songs from each band, with Wormwitch starting it off. The Canadians once again demonstrate their ability to marry first-pumping melodic black metal, crust and rock ‘n’ roll in an exciting fashion. It works best on opening track “Weapons Against Despair,” an eerily cheery title for a black ‘n’ roll song. Bursts of tremolo picking and flurries of harmonies mix with “Ough!” grooves and crust punk drumming, bleeding into the faster-paced “Rayonnant Banners.” “Spells of Tartarus” is the most traditionally black metal of the bunch, inevitably bringing to mind comparisons to UADA and Dissection.
“Obscurity’s Stare,” the first song from Sadistic Ritual’s side of the split, keeps the energy going strong, launching right into some thrashy black ‘n’ roll. “The Recusant” is a straightforward black-thrash assault—the riffs are pointed, the drums build tension and vocalist Charlie Southern sounds like he might spit on the listener in disgust. Closer “Reminiscence Unrealized” brings Sadistic Ritual’s death metal influences to the front, rolling heavy riffs into head-bobbing thrash parts.
Split releases are best enjoyed when each artist gets in and out in clean, concise fashion. Sadistic Ritual and Wormwitch both understand this—the six songs on their split are potent, aggressive and show off the full range of each band’s capabilities. Boris Records is physically releasing the split on March 22, so get your pre-order in now.
