We Bow Before Your Blackened Essence.....

Two words come to mind when someone mentions The Black Dahlia Murder. Fucking and Awesome. 

I have been a fan of the Detroit metallers for a few years now and I just love their stuff. They are all genuinely nice guys (No I'm not just saying that because I'm a fan-boy, I have met a few of them at gigs) and they come up with some of the best death metal on the scene in my opinion. 

This month marks the release of their highly anticipated 5th full length, Ritual. And interestingly, since acquiring a copy of it, the album itself has become a bit of a ritual in itself. I.e. I get up, i listen to it, then continue to listen to it for most of the day. It is that good. 

Most of you who are fans of the band will have heard the 3 tracks that they have bandied about the net for us to hear. Those being Moonlight Equilibrium, Conspiring With The Damned and Malenchanments Of The Necrosphere.

  Track Listing:

1. A Shrine to Madness
2. Moonlight Equilibrium
3. On Stirring Seas of Salted Blood
4. Conspiring With the Damned
5. The Window
6. Carbonized in Cruciform
7. Den of the Picquerist
8. Malenchanments of the Necrosphere
9. The Grave Robber’s Work
10. The Raven
11. Great Burning Nullifier
12. Blood in the Ink

Now, whilst all three of the "singles" released are just pure awesome, the album as a whole is everything good about those tracks and more. It is a solid release that just assaults your ears consistently for about 45 minutes. 

The first time I listened to this album was about 3 days ago, I pressed play and was confronted with a very solemn cello/violin solo that would not be out of place at a funeral procession. The haunting tune continues to increase in volume slightly for around 50 seconds until it reaches a crescendo. All hell then breaks loose. Trevor Strnad's guttural vocals combine with the blistering guitar work and the frenetic drums to create an absolutely mental atmosphere. Shrine to madness is just vintage TBDM and I love it. 

I would go into detail about Moonlight Equilibrium.......however it is easily available to listen to on the net so here is a link for all you lazy people. Check It Out!

The third track on the album really took me by surprise, it is just something totally different. Now i was of the opinion before I heard the album that it would be a total travesty if they decided to break the mould with this release. I mean I know pretty much all their albums have followed the same formula, but it works! So why change. Anyway, that is totally not true and TBDM have surpassed themselves with this track. On Stirring Seas Of Salted Blood is brutal, doom laden, in your face and just fucking epic. Its just one of those songs that would get everyone in the room very angry and wanting to bounce up and down like lunatics. Which in my opinion is a good thing! 

Ritual continues along the lines of being totally awesome throughout, this is helped by various factors:

1. Trevor has NAILED the lows on this album. They are so much better and just kick ass. 
2. Ryan Knight and Brian Eschbach have eclipsed the guitar work on pretty much every other TBDM album by giving the listener a completely new experience with every song.
3. Shannon Lucas kills it on the drums. Its fast, heavy and, as a drummer myself I can say without a doubt, fucking impossible to play! 

My favourite track on the album has to be The Window. Its fast, has some awesome riffs and well just made me want to get up, turn it up to full volume and go bat shit crazy. Its pure, unadulterated TBDM. This is just perfection. 

So then, lets wrap this enormous post up shall we? 

Ritual is about as close to perfect as you can get. I am a very hard person to please when it comes to music. I usually get an album, think some of the tracks are ok but discard the rest of the album. This is not the case here. Every track left a lasting impression on me and I had to listen again and again. The only complaint i have about this album is that there isn't  more of it (Although at 12 tracks long it is an absolute treat to behold) and that they aren't in England right now touring with it. 

It is fast, chaotic, insane and just everything i love about metal in one neat little package. If you have to actually OWN one album before you die. This has to be it. You need this record in your life to call it anywhere near complete. 

All I can say as a parting comment really is: 

GET IT. NOW 

10/10