Ruin of Remembrance – Second World (2012)

In the days when shitty bands want to charge 10 bucks for a horribly recorded and even worse written release on the internet, it is quite refreshing to hear the amazing “Second World”, a free for download release by Ruin of Remembrance. This German band does a killer job in creating ten tracks of super catchy and atmospheric Melodic Death Metal in the same vein as Insomnium, Omnium Gatherum, and older The Elysian Fields.

Opening with a very atmospheric intro, the magic fully comes out of its shell with the killer “Never Forget”. Dominating riffs and excellent atmospheric elements create a very melodic and dark vibe, and the pummeling ‘drums’ (we have our doubts if they are real or programmed, but we are leaning towards the second more) just craft a brilliant track. The band has no issues in keeping the intensity level very high, and with excellent and somber atmosphere like on “Birth of an Atheist”, sound that reminded us very much of The Elysian Fields and their killer release “We... the Enlightened”.

Avoiding being linear and dull is one of the band’s many talents since tracks like “Deception – Second World” have very interesting tempo changes and it even features a very dreamy Post-Metal/Shoegaze-ish passage that we downright fell in love with. The band does have heavier and more aggressive tracks than Insomnium and Omnium Gatherum, with “Alcoholic Love” and “Farwell, Banner of Hope” being clear examples. Our favorite track in this release is the seven-minute epic “A Martyr Betrayed”, a very dark and emotional rollercoaster ride with excellent atmospheric elements, killer melodic sections, and piercing guitar riffs.

 For fans of Insomnium, “IX” delivers a very similar styled melancholic track. Closing with the dramatic tracks “Shattered Dreams and Ancient Methods” and “Outro: 130410” this release comes full circle with lush compositions that are very atmospheric in nature, but always keep a hefty dosage of killer riffs in them. However, we think that the drums on “Shattered…” sound very over the top and frankly a bit bad in this track.

If you like Melodic Death Metal with a hefty dosage of atmospheric elements, “Second World” is a release that you can’t afford to not be downloading. We are psyched about how good this band is, and how many great ideas they have in their music. Once they get a real drummer, they should be good to go ahead the greats of Melodic/Atmospheric Death Metal and come on top.

Release: March 24th, 2012

Genre: Melodic Death Metal

Country: Germany