Reapers Riddle make the kind of modern metal that a pretentious anarchist metal critic like me might normally listen too, sneer at and then never touch again. Yet, Reapers Riddle do something a little different with their music, getting a result that is a lot less bland than most modern metal and instead engaging and after a fashion kind of beautiful. While I am certainly not a gamer, there are certain tropes used here that are not lost on me and the flavor and passion behind this EP is easy to identify with making Reapers Riddle one of the few modern metal bands I can actually claim to enjoy.
See, Reapers Riddle seem to be self aware about how silly choosing video games as a centerpiece for an EP can be. So while the music is often quite serious, it certainly does not pain Reapers Riddle as one of those modern metal bands who claim to be 'bringing metal back'. This creates a refreshing facade for many standard modern metal tropes to play out across. The production here is stellar and the songwriting tight, and as opposed to many of Reapers Riddle's peers, this time it actually comes across as tasty and interesting. The end result of this is a release that acknowledges all of the strictures that the mainstream metal audience loves while pushing at the edges to get something a bit more exciting.
Game Over is maybe not the kind of EP that I personally will be spinning many times, but I certainly see the appeal, and some of these songs have a certain charm that few bands can touch on. Reapers Riddle get the magical and slightly whimsical heart of heavy metal in a way that few non power metal bands do. Be it in the ominous "Tick tock" of The Clock (Part 1) or the fun countdown in Game Over Reapers Riddle provide a lot of engaging listening and I think that as they develop and further break the rules of mainstream metal they will be able to do some very cool things.
Find them on Facebook!
https://www.facebook.com/reapersriddle?fref=ts
No comments:
Post a Comment