Album: Rising, To Solemn Ash
Label: Exile On Mainstream
Release: US January 17, 2012
Track Listing:
1. Mausoleum
2. Sea of Basalt
3. The Vault
4. Cohorts Rise
5. Hunter’s Crown
6. Through the Eyes of Catalysis
7. Under Callous Wings
8. Passage
9. Heir to the Flames
10.Seven Riders
I’ve been in a writing rut lately. I’ve been listening to all this great new metal but I can’t seem to put words to paper. The fact that Rising’s debut album – To Solemn Ash – is the one that might bring me out of my funk is testament to it’s awesomeness.
This sludge trio from Denmark formed in 2008 and to date has only released an EP and a single but has finally recorded a full length album which caught the ear of the brass at Exile on Mainstream to get a US release. Another testament to the killer nature of the record is that Exile on Mainstream usually focuses on bands that are somewhat off the wall so for them to sign something that is so accessible must mean something, right?
Over the span of 48 minutes these guys expertly blend vintage metal with sludge to create both the typical down-in-the-muck feel and headbanging grooves. At first listen, you can definitely hear how these guys would fit well with bands like Mastodon or High on Fire but they’d also be a decent pairing with Death Angel or Evile as well.
From the first moments of the disc you can feel the power. It’s like being stuck under and avalanche of rocks with no hopes of getting out. The weight of the record is just immense and sinister. But then songs like “Passage” also add a groove into the mix that makes you want to bust out of that rock pile and throw a few fists around.
“Mausoleum,” “Sea of Basalt” and “The Vault” are a fantastic trio to open the record with. All three have killer riffs and melodies that make them stick in your brain for days to come.
If there’s any flaw to the record it’s that it starts getting a little repetitive by the end but To Solemn Ash is way too killer to be worried about that minor point. Keep the name Rising on your tongue as you should be hearing more from them in the years to come.
“Sea of Basalt”
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