Six Feet Under - Death Rituals Review

Posted by Peter Smith on 12.05.2008

Six Feet Under offer another slab of their distinctive brand of death metal to the masses.

Tracklist:

1."Death By Machete"
2."Involuntary Movement Of Dead Flesh"
3."None Will Escape"
4."Eulogy For The Undead"
5."Seed Of Filth"
6."Bastard"
7."Into The Crematorium"
8."Shot In The Head"
9."Killed In Your Sleep"
10."Crossroads To Armageddon"
11."Ten Deadly Plagues"
13."Crossing The River Styx"
14."Murder Addiction"



Review:

Ahh…Six Feet Under. They’ve been creating records crammed full of death metal basics for years. By attaching the “basic” label to them, I do not mean to belittle their musicianship or contributions to the genre. I simply mean that there is a no nonsense approach to their writing and style. I may not be the first in line to pick up a new Six Feet Under record, but I do respect their method and consistency. They also seem willing to poke fun at the genre from time to time, which in an often all too serious genre, stands out.

Death Rituals certainly maintains this approach. It features the classic death vocals of Chris Barnes, guitars that are almost always either eerie or head-bobbingly heavy, and drums that are not too busy. The song titles (and I would presume the lyrics, though I was not given a lyric sheet) are an over-the-top mix of violence and horror. My personal favorite title this time around is “Involuntary Movement of Dead Flesh”(what does that even mean?!?).

I have always felt that Six Feet Under were at their best when they were riding a groove. Fortunately, this occurs often on Death Rituals. “Eulogy of the Undead” and “Seed of Filth” are good examples of this, but you can find a solid groove at some point in most songs.

My personal favorite track is “Bastard”. It is perhaps the only track that I could attempt to label as “fun” and features the band showing off its Graveyard Classics tendencies. Yes, it is an old Motley Crue cover. They push it through the Six Feet Under machine, slowing it down and sludging it up a bit to better fit their style, but you can still definitely tell it is a Crue song. It is one of those rare instances where a cover actually sounds better than the original. I never was a big fan of the Crue version, but I am really digging Six Feet Under’s take on it.

There really isn’t much to criticize on Death Rituals. Sure, some might consider this a safe record. If you listen to it alongside other Six Feet Under records, it really isn’t going to sound much different. But this band really does not need to change up their formula. They have a sound and they stay true to that sound with each record. You could say they are the AC/DC of death metal (I'm sure I'm not the first to make this comparison).

Fans of Six Feet Under will not be disappointed with Death Rituals. It has all the ingredients of a quality Six Feet Under record. Folks who are not fans will not likely be won over with this record. But if you like basic death metal with a little bit of classic rock thrown in, give it a listen.

Recommended Tracks: "Bastard", "Seed of Filth"

The 411: Death Rituals is not particularly memorable or adventurous. Chances are if you have heard Six Feet Under before, you're not going to be surprised by anything on this record. But old fans will appreciate the tried and true approach. It is no nonsense, bare bones death metal.

Final Score:  7.5   [ Good ]