HOUR OF 13
The Ritualist
(Northern Silence Productions / Eyes like Snow)
48:41min

Close your eyes, take a deep breath and expect a long jump back in time to the obscure roots of occult Heavy Metal. I’m referring to the bands which can be found on nearly every old and rotten Metal jacket, the ones with dirt stains all around them due to countless festival seasons and thousand of heavy drinking Metal parties. If now bands like MERCYFUL FATE and KING DIAMOND are coming into your mind you are with me and far more important you are ready for this jewel of traditional Heavy / Doom Metal. The second release of HOUR OF 13 – founded in 2006 in lovely North Carolina / United States – is like a relict of the old record collection of my dear father! Sound- and musicwise “The Ritualist” is like a 50 minutes trip to the times when nearly nobody imagined such ‘horrible’ music like Black and Death Metal. I’m really impressed because the album is offering such a convincing atmosphere – in modern terms people would talk about the old school factor – starting with cover artwork, songtitles and most important the dark sound of the presented tracks that the theory of a time hole seems not so absurd anymore. This album is really a jewel for all Metalheads which has grown up in these innocent days – when our dear lord Satan was more an interesting than a serious topic – and who don’t need any 80s re-release because they already own the originals. Due to this fact this album isn’t automatically uninteresting for all younger fans but the mixture of Heavy and Doom Metal on this record is really a special dish, so let’s close the review for this unique release with the magic words – “Come, come to the Sabbath, down by the ruined bridge… www.northern-silence.de, www.myspace.com/hourof13doom

Matthias Auch

Matthias Auch

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