Rituals Of A Blasphemer - "Mors Inumbratus Supra Spiritus" Album Review

On the surface, one might disregard Mexico City's Rituals Of A Blasphemer (originally of Stilwell, Oklahoma) as a band that merely pays homage to the lo-fi, raw spirit of early/mid-nineties Black Metal from Norway – but that would be a mistake. There is more going on here than I initially suspected.

For the discriminating Black Metal elitist asshole (such as myself), there is nothing worse than being constantly inundated with Darkthrone-worshipping basement Black Metal bands. Having said that, I can smell/hear one from a mile away, and avoid at all costs. So, to my surprise (and delight), my initial assumptions about Rituals Of A Blasphemer – which were based on black and white photos of members Lebana and Nocturnus Dominus fully corpse-painted and grimacing – were proven to be quite unfounded.
The band has something quite special, and that becomes increasingly apparent throughout their debut album “Mors Inumbratus Supra Spiritus”, released via Unholy Vision Records.

The first track, “Chaos Consumed Existence”, kicks off immediately with a simultaneously raw and emotional riff that actually IS quite reminiscent of Darkthrone circa 1992, but evolves into something else fairly quickly, with the powerful and tormented screams of vocalist Lebana lending a new, fresh dimension to the mix.

Generally, I am wary of female vocalists in metal, as they are often either just terrible or simply “passable”, but rarely as good as their male counterparts. In the case of Rituals Of A Blasphemer, however, Lebana is the exception to the rule. She dominates the vocal position and demands attention with authority and intensity as well as or better than any man could, while forcing her misanthropic, traditionally-Satanic message into your psyche at knife point (figuratively speaking).

A bit later in the same opening track comes some excellent lead guitar work courtesy of Nocturnus Dominus. Quite surprising, but not at all unwelcome. Generally, guitar solos have no place in raw black metal. But then again, black metal is not limited by anything other than those who place limits on themselves.

As the principal composer and musician in the duo, Nocturnus understands the formula, seems to know how to achieve what he wants, and adds his own essence to the traditional Black Metal style, making something personal and unique without straying too far from the essentials.
Not only is it nice to find an obviously experienced and competent musician who plays this raw style of music (not simply because it is all he is capable of, like so many others), but I especially appreciate that the solos he chooses to implement are not there just to show that he has chops. They really add to the composition and atmosphere of the song, and that seems to be the point with everything RoaB does on this album. It truly is all about the music and message, and with that as your focus, you can never go wrong.

The rest of the record adds layer upon layer of equal parts hostility and melancholy in very captivating and genuine ways. Think Carpathian Forest meets Satanic Warmaster, with something else untouchable that is entirely unique. For instance, comparing the short-but-sweet “Perverse Ritual Fucking” with the albums title track “Mors Inumbratus Supra Spiritus” reveals the impressive range of this excellent debut from Rituals Of A Blasphemer.

FINAL VERDICT: Buy or Die!

The album is available for purchase from the bands official website, and directly from Unholy Visions official website as well.

Preview it in it's entirety on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00gLHOdjYRc

For more information on Rituals Of A Blasphemer:
Official Website: http://ritualsofablasphemer.yolasite.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ritualsofablasphemerofficial

Unholy Vision Records: http://unholy-vision-records.yolasite.com/


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Mission Statement.

This blog, tentatively titled "Black Metal Ruined My Life", exists as an outlet for me to express my musical and spiritual opinions. As such, I will post everything from random thoughts or moments of insight to album and concert reviews, primarily dealing with the Black Metal genre of music and Gnostic Luciferian/Satanic philosophy.
I am currently working on a few album reviews from lesser-known, but very worthwhile, Black Metal artists, which will be posted whenever the fuck I feel like it. Soon, probably.

If you would like to have your band's demo, EP, LP, or any such media reviewed on BMRML, e-mail Thomas at principivmangvis@yahoo.com.

The Dark Heart of Black Metal

I have always believed that Black Metal contains the highest potential for creative freedom and artistic innovation. For example, when comparing different bands in the death metal genre, the differences are certainly there to see for the initiated, but the formula is generally the same. The same applies to the thrash, grindcore, punk, glam, etc. genres. All of the acts within those styles are essentially the same ideas channeled through slightly different vessels.
With Black Metal, however, there is layer upon layer of understanding and experience that must be traveled through in order to comprehend the full scope of what has been done and can be done within it's broad confines. For example, no one with any knowledge of Black Metal would compare Venom to Secrets of the Moon, or Dissection to Ad Hominem or Lifelover.
I'm sure there are countless “metalheads” who would love to disagree and argue with me. To them I say Fuck You. I will open your throat and leave you to bleed out on the pavement like the insignificant insect you are. You are nothing, and that is all I will say about that.

Another important point of Black Metal – we are all insects, or worse. This is one of the fundamental lessons of the genre, which to many is also a philosophy or way of life. I'm not referring to the clothes one wears, or the slang one adopts into their vocabulary (though many such sheep are attracted to black metal, like anything else). I'm referring to the core beliefs and principles that are essential to understanding the true aim of Black Metal – and all true art, once you understand it.

There is an answer to all the questions that you used to ask, before you got old and became jaded or disillusioned with the journey for truth. The answer has always been there. You just never were able to put all the pieces together, and you gave up. You have yourself to blame for it, and you will wander the Earth and this plane of existence for eternity until you find the way.
Black Metal is a gateway to liberation – creatively, spiritually, and LITERALLY. It isn't just music. Some of it is “just music” though, just like people or spiritual teachings or art – just fodder, fashion, filler, or fucking useless distractions. But if you have an eye for it, and are at least awakened enough to recognize the truth or something real when you see/hear it, it is buried under all the rotting corpses of the unworthy, like the shining truth in our own history of “civilization”.

Therein lies another point I'd like to focus on. To the uninitiated, Black Metal appears as one of two things: either A) a sideshow act with themes of Halloween and ghouls and goblins (sometimes Scandinavian pagan stereotypes), set to symphonic circus music, thanks to more mainstream, theatrical bands that have perverted and sterilized the spirit of Black Metal, or B) an indistinguishable and vast array of identically face-painted and black-clad losers dabbling in Darkthrone-worshipping raw static noise, sometimes running around in the woods and calling out to Anton LaVey's distorted idea of Satan.

These two stereotypes are very real, unfortunately. The former primarily consists of people who will not grow out of it, because in their heart they are truly weak and long for the illusion of beauty. That will not change unless they are somehow traumatized by life events.
The latter is a trap that those who WERE on the right path can easily fall into, and often do.
The numbers of bands or musicians out there who focus their life around this kind of music and lifestyle are staggering. On the surface it seems like so much wasted potential, but really it is exactly as it should be, because these false representations of Black Metal serve a very important purpose. They act as a wall that keeps the dark heart of black metal obscured to the masses. People think they understand based on what they see, and at times this can be frustrating, but eventually one realizes that, just as in occult practices and the path of a Gnostic spiritual warrior, the truth is not for everyone. The truth does not come with a pretty t-shirt and does not have a sweet flavor. It is bitter and abominable, and so very beautiful, shining in it's own black light.
This is another aspect of Black Metal that I find very fascinating, the multi-tiered path one must traverse to ascend (or descend, if you will) into it's dark heart. It is so accessible to anyone with a musical instrument and a set of lungs, but it will naturally restrict and weed out the weak, and siphon through the true believers, and the true artists.

These are just a few of the reasons why I choose to create, destroy, exist, and die under the banner of Black Metal.

Until next time...