New Plymouth three piece Infinity Ritual are blasting out the gate, fresh off the boots of their debut first single I'm Gone from their self-titled upcoming EP.
The song begins with a thunderous drum fill courtesy of drummer Mark Thomas, making way for a big groovy, distorted onslaught of guitar riffage. The verses and first chorus are vocally hooky and melodic with a musical undertow of heavier and sludgier tones. This song balances the heavy with melody in a similar vein to bands like Mastodon and Cave In.
The addition of the growled vocals in the second chorus really build the momentum of the chorus and the song continues to grind. Musically, the bridge has a Black Sabbath type feel with the lead guitar tonality and while its simplistic its effective and sits comfortably in the mix.
The outro is heavier again, china cymbals ring out and the mix of clean and growled vocals by guitarist/vocalist Adam Colless and bassist/vocalist Jason Karam work really well in building further momentum before the song climaxes in feedback harmony. They have showcased their sound in just over three minutes and it will cater for fans of rock and metal, full of groove with hints of stoner rock and doom.
The production is sleek but raw courtesy of Sam Johnson at Rhythm Ace and mastered by Chris Chetland at KOG who has his name over countless releases. A strong debut and a band to watch. Bring on the debut EP!
Riffs + Groove + Volume = Infinity Ritual. Groove Metal, Stoner Rock, Doom all mixed together to create something different and hard to define. Infinity Ritual is a three-piece New Plymouth band who have been creating and recording over the past two years. The debut self titled EP was released on July 29th 2022 on Vinyl, CD and Streaming services. The first track, I'm Gone was released on Friday 13th May, 2022.
EP II was released on November 3rd 2023. II was recorded and mixed by studio wizard Sam Johnson at Rhythm Ace in Oakura between January and July 2023. It was mastered by Chris Chetland at KOG Mastering, lacquers were cut by Adam Gonsalves at Telegraph Audio Mastering in Portland USA, and the vinyl and CDs were manufactured by Stebbing in Auckland. Jackson Thomas, son of drummer Mark, designed the EP's cover and insert, and also played Moog and piano on the EP.
"The New Plymouth-based stoner groove metal group has put on quite the show for us here. Their new EP II is an experiment...a show of catchy 'metallised' Arctic Monkeys' riffs bootstrapped with addictive grooves and an ever-changing atmosphere, which is definitely at the pinnacle of underground music in NZ." - Liam Davis, Muzic.net.nz