Genocidal Rites – Genocidal Upheaval Of Subservient Abrahamic Law

With a demo and three solid EP’s under their belts, it was about time that this relatively young band went for their full-length debut. And although Genocidal Rites’ latest EP came out through the smaller 18 Is 9 Records And Tapes label, this long player is presented by the revered Hells Headbangers Records, that already released the band’s second EP as well. With these guys’ previous excellent work and an outstanding label backing them up, their debut had to be a blast, and it is…

Those who have heard the band’s earlier output will recognize their tendency to change everything into a controlled whirling chaos. Glad that part of the recipe didn’t change. In fact, they even perfected that specific talent by adding some noisy elements to the mix. To accompany that noisier sound, and here comes the major difference from the older recordings, the band changed the vocal antics. With its grinding tenor, the band clearly opted for a more ferocious vocal style. The more thunderous and low-growling grunts of the EP’s are traded for higher pitched maniacal vocals that would fit well with quality Grindcore bands like Rotten Sound, Gadget or even Agoraphobic Nosebleed.

The overall rather crust punky up-beat rhythms do reveal the band’s penchant for that sort of music as well. Hells Headbangers mentions bands like Anti-Cimex, Avskum and GBH. Well, these are certainly well-chosen parallels, adding much to Genocidal Rites’ mishmash of all things loud and furious. This makes ‘Genocidal Upheaval Of Subservient Abrahamic Law’ a more diverse and overall “mature” album than the previously released short players combined.

But, to those who got a bit afraid that Genocidal Rites might be too far off from their favourite style of frenzied Black/Death Metal: no worries needed. The Grindcore and D-beat Punk influences are there and clearly palpable, they merely add to the overall experience and do not take over. By no means this qualifies as Black/Punk or anything similar, this will definitely still please the clientele of (Bestial) Black Metal. (FelixS)

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Some of you might have grown up in the 80’s and some might even remember the notorious ‘satanic panic’ movement where (mostly Americans) started to look for explanations on ‘why their children don’t act the way they were supposed to’ in all the places where nobody behaves, not even if their lives depend on it. Since metal was in a really good shape back then and the original MTV was even playing some of it in late night hours, the culprit was more than obvious to the parents who were freaking out over their kids’ irrational behaviour.

One of the popular ways of finding hidden ‘satanic’ messages was playing recorded speech and music backwards (even though the idea originated in the sixties, it became widely spread in the decade when literally every household could afford at least a tape recorder if not a proper HiFi system)… now, four decades later, a band which pops into mind when thinking how to provoke Karens who are still looking for those hidden messages today, are definitely Ohios Genocidal Rites and the intro into their debut full length.

Even though this is a relatively young band, as they were formed in 2021 and by the time a lot of other acts in the genre are still focusing on what kind of carpet they should put under their amps so it wouldn’t bruise like their ego, Genocidal Rites have built a solid (as in ‘recognisable’) sound and a serious following through a demo and three EPs, until briefly disappearing in 2023… and coming back in 2025 with their own take on advocacy FOR satanic panic (it’s important to distinguish between FOR and AGAINST in this case). Bands who make ordinary people panic are good bands.

Like the title of the album is not enough to provoke the avid church-goers, Karens and conspiracy theorists, the band also delivers the proper, destructive, chaotic take on bestial Black Metal. Bestial Black Metal is not a genre which would allow a lot of manoeuvring space when it comes to sound and most metal fans quickly disregard it as being boring and unimaginative. So let me point it out again… metal and especially Black Metal is a genre of building up an atmosphere and there’s way more to atmosphere than just ‘you know, those relaxing sounds which put me to sleep’. Atmosphere can be destructive, suffocating, chaotic, horrible and powerful, while still managing to remain recognisable in a myriad of bands claiming they are something… while they are dating Karens and taking several years to choose carpets which won’t bruise their amps. Genocidal Rites don’t even share personal info (as currently not many people know who actually is a member of the band), because they don’t need to. You know it’s them and you can tell it all from how it sounds. May it be one band member or five, it doesn’t matter. This young band is getting recognition among the fans of the genre with their music and their hatred… which should take them far in this part of the underground where people still make music and don’t just dwell on the coke they snorted decades ago, while not recording anything new. (Black Mary)