DeepDiscountCD.com

Rendered Armor on CD

Ritual Howls create a cinematic blend of twangy industrial rock that could fuel a post apocalyptic dance floor. A collaboration between Paul Bancell (vocals, guitar), Chris Samuels (synth, samples, drum machine), and Ben Saginaw (bass), the Detroit trio's fourth full length'Rendered Armor' follows the 'Their Body' EP of 2018 with expansive arrangements sculpted with masterful production. Throughout 'Rendered Armor' familiar influences reveal themselves, but the band doesn't rely on derivative imitation. Instead, Ritual Howls forge haunting atmospheres that are all their own, reaching into unexpected sonic domain. Each track unfolds with unnerving anticipation, as if sound tracking a chase scene in a surrealist western film. Bancell delivers his baritone above a jangling guitar like an incantation, evoking macabre, religious imagery laden with futuristic undertones. Propelled by Saginaw's often fuzzed out bass and Samuels' dance club friendly rhythms, it's no surprise that the band hails from the techno capital of the US. Ritual Howls' most mature offering to date, 'Rendered Armor' finds the band further carving out their own eclectic mix of organic instrumentation and pulsing electronics, distinguishing them as a unique force in the current landscape of underground music.