New York City’s Ruin Lust established themselves as an uncompromising force in the extreme underground back around 2011. Over the course of their last couple releases, Ruin Lust have stuck to their primal vision to construct a combative style of death metal that is ruthless, raw, and unrefined. With that being said, the band has upgraded in many ways with their newest effort Choir of Babel.
One of the obvious ways being the fact that the album is their debut on the filth-nurturing 20 Buck Spin, a record label that churns out relentless release after relentless release and has grown into one of the most reliable sources for underground death metal.
Choir of Babel smothers you with five manic tracks, expanding Ruin Lust’s extreme traits further into devastating and darkened territory. Each song is loaded with primitive howls and twisted riffing, sandwiched between blackened overtones and a filthy underbelly.
Commencing with thunderous percussion and dooming heaviness, “The Choir of Babel” lures the listener in for nearly two minutes before the frenetic developments begin. Ruin Lust reveal their barbaric operation through a cavernous tone and war-metal inspired blast beats that pummel you over the head constantly.
On this release, they’ve come back heavier, channeling in their guitar tone for more clarity of riffs that shine through the muddy presentation of sound more than they have on prior works.
Ruin Lust release a whirlwind of ruinous riffing that both “Prison of Sentient Horror” and “Worm” bring to the forefront. The former track develops a riff for the better part of the first half of the song, which comes to a head and erupts into the “riff of the album” delivered straight from the grave. A frenzied chaos ensues, as it does in most of these tracks, as the song blasts its way through to the end.
“Bestial Magnetism” is an OSDM gem that charges forth with vocal variations that go from bestial howl to a distressing scream. Meanwhile, the percussion blazes a path of unrelenting turbulence, as guitar strings proceed to get absolutely mutilated leading up to the nearly-nine-minute atrocity that is “Rite of Binding.”
On Choir of Babel, Ruin Lust reveal a horrid aesthetic that is complemented by the savage extremities of the instruments and vocals. They’ve been able to jam-pack riff after riff, speed, filth, and cruelty all within five tracks that certainly sets the tone appropriately for the 20 Buck Spin year to come.