Sonic Ritual     

Last Exodus From The Land Of The Dead
Electric Assault Record 2013

Swedish metallic punks Sonic Ritual strike again with a new 7" that rips and roars through 4 songs of Motorhead meets Turbonegro after raping Pennywise.  The scorching opener, Final Halt (Retain Control), charges forth with a massive Motorhead bass line which then turns into a riff.  The chorus's first part is total punk and then falls into some more melodic elements in the vocal line.  A metallic solo draws the song towards it conclusion.  Early Graves utilizes a killer, almost doom riff that is punctuated by some snappy vocal lines that reminds me of Turbonegro's Scandinavian Leather.  Man, that main riff is so infectious and causes my head to sway.  The chorus bounces in with a feverish rock-anthem feel to it.  A jumpy drum beat and circular lead set the stage on Sonic Ritual's cover of the Obsessed's Iron & Stone.  The song then collapses into a Discharge riff and a PUNK ROCK chorus which highlight's Sonic Ritual's ability to turn this classic into their own.  The final track picks back up on those Motorhead-ish elements of throbbing bass lines and balls out riffing.  The acoustic guitar was a nice touch before the song smoothes out a bit and then hammers away with the punchy chorus.  I'll be honest, I was never really pulled in by Sonic Ritual despite Fenriz naming them one of his bands of the week.  However I can now see I was missing out.  This is some driving, passionate metallic punk that is all spit and white knuckles as each tracks hurtles headlong into night at 100 miles an hour.