When was the last time that death metal surprised you? It can often stun, stir, shock, and in the wrong hands stagnate, of course. However, rarely does the word “surprise” come up. Part of that is in the very nature of the style; death metal leans more toward the head than the heart, more towards neck-snapping than emotionally-stirring. Ritual Mass absolutely do not shy away from the chaos, the intellectually-stimulating songwriting, or that ineffable feeling of rot in the style’s best; moreover, they accent all that with shockingly moving music that feels every bit as emotionally resonant as technically proficient. Fear not, Cascading Misery isn’t an emo cry-fest or simply surface-level. The songs feel like the darkest dredges of humanity being stripped away from you and having to reckon with the resulting carnage (misery?). Their version of borderline proggy cavernous death metal works because of the depth of sound and sensation, creating something that implants on your soul as well as your cervical spine.
Guitarist/vocalist Phil “PT” Trona shares how that duality played out:
“We wanted to create something that evoked a feeling. Whether that feeling be anxiety, dread, fear, etc. is completely in the hands of the listener. Much of it is open to interpretation. We wanted to create something that was equally chaotic as it was atmospheric. The balancing of styles is a result of having a vast amount of influences between the four of us. I think to focus on just one style or element of death metal is over-done and uninteresting. We wanted to create something that was truly our own interpretation of the genre. To us, that cannot be done without being inspired by everything that has helped to shape death metal and extreme music in general over the years. Everything on the album, from the music, to the visuals are all very deliberate and with specific intent.”
The record sounds like stumbling on an ancient rite deep underground and never being the same; that sensibility takes bits from the band’s past and current thematic explorations:
“In the beginning of the band there was definitely a thematic exploration of Christian mysticism and religious zeal. The goal was not to make a statement, but rather to dissect these things and their inherent darkness, while trying to avoid the classic ‘evil’ tropes of extreme music. With Cascading Misery, we definitely wanted to move on from that and make a much more personal album. At its core, this body of work is about the unraveling of the self: internal and external atrocities slowly stripping away the ties that bind you to reality.”
Cascading Misery is out on Friday, and you can preorder it from 20 Buck Spin. Follow Ritual Mass on Instagram for future updates.
Photo Credit: J. Adams
