Description
2011 press on glow in dark colors with gatefold cover and bonus single. Limited 300 copies
The American doom act Hour Of 13 released one of the most memorable debut albums of the last 10 years back in 2007. It was an album that quickly established them as one of the new leaders in occult-driven doom metal. The Ritualist not only is a great follow up to that album but in some ways, its even better through stronger production and doom tunes that are rich in catchiness. What sets the band apart from so many others in the doom metal scene is their total devotion to genuine sounds from the past, everything from Sabbath, Pagan Altar, Witchfinder General, Candlemass to more traditional heavy metal bands like Mercyful Fate and Judas Priest but make no mistake, this is doom metal in its purest form. It is great that the vocals of Phil Swanson are here, there was some talk it wasn’t going to be the case but thankfully they are on this album and he delivers a flawless performance. His voice may be one-dimensional but he has a natural charisma in his vocals that offers a dramatic, emotional edge to the songs. The first thing that becomes clear is the guitar sound has been giving an extra boost of chunkiness on this album and the overall production is more polished than the debut offering. The next thing that becomes obvious a few songs in, is this album has more variety in the song structures but the lyrical content remains the same. A lot of bands are playing in this retro style these days but not many of them nail it quite like Hour Of 13 do on The Ritualist. Totally old-school right down to the production while remaining seriously heavy, this album should gain a wide audience of thrilled listeners. The musical technical ability of the Chad Davis combined with the charismatic charm of Swanson’s vocals makes this a all round winner. If you plan on buying just one retro-doom rock album this year, its hard to go past this one.
Track list:
1. The Gathering
2. The Ritualist
3. Naked Star
4. Demons All Around Me
5. Possession
6. Soldiers Of Satan
7. Evil Inside
8. The Crawlspace
Vinyl single:
1. Grim Reality-2006 rehearsal
2. Call To Satan-live in Dublin 12th September 2010