As debut albums go Beyond The Fragile Horizon by Italian band The Ritual is a bit of a surprise. There again it shouldn't really be a surprise as Italy is a bit of a hot bed at the moment for unleashing some absolutely sublime bands and fantastic albums.
The quality of production and song writing is paramount here and what this album lacks in originality the band more than make up for by mixing varying rock genres to create a fascinating and addictive sonic atmosphere never loosing sight of that all important melody. For me the only downfall of the album is that the band don't really plant their feet firmly in any one genre, which isn't always a bad thing.
The tunes displayed are both memorable and powerful which is always a winning formula. Marco Obice's clear cut vocal presence is more than welcome throughout, where he quite cleverly doesn't fall into the age old trap of trying to emulate others which gives him that air of authority with the rest of the band in full support really adding to the whole depth and dynamics.
There are several standout moments including the galloping Iron Maiden inflected Jason On The River, a thrash led Hysteria And Madness, the groove and infectious The Liar and the nearest thing to a power metal ballad Without. The standout moment on the album though is the closing Nothing Is The Same (Sacrifice) something that makes the participation in this album worth while.
It will be really interesting to see where the band goes from here with that illusive second album?
Track List: 1. Beyond The Fragile Horizon
2. Show Me What You Can Do
3. Jason On The River
4. Hysteria And Madness
5. Shoot Me
6. Without
7. Together
8. The Liar
9. Nothing Is The Same (Sacrifice)
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