Holy Grail – “Ride The Void”

A galloping introduction sets the scene for what is to follow on Ride The Void, the new album from Los Angeles metallers Holy Grail. Following up their critically-acclaimed Crisis In Utopia was always going to be a tough call but, as “Archeus” gives way to the rip-roaring “Bestia Triumphans”, a track which flies out of the starting gate with all guitars wailing and soaring vocals, it’s fair to say that the LA shredders have more than matched their debut.

Despite living in a time when this sort of stuff is an acquired taste, to anyone with an ear for the more traditional wares, it’s hard to avoid the quality of metal on offer. Taking a trick or two from modern power metal heavyweights like DragonForce as well as the old guard (Judas Priest etc.), the band fronted by an ex-member of fellow US metallers White Wizzard are certainly no slouches when it comes to writing their own slices of thrashing, galloping metal anthems. Take the rollicking “Bleeding Stone” as a prime example of a song built around a simple yet thoroughly unforgettable riff and you’ll get a fair idea of what Holy Grail do so well. Simple, thrashy classic metal that doesn’t pretend to reinvent the wheel, but does pay homage to those great bands who wrote the rulebook.

Sticking to a fairly simple and very well used formula, Ride The Void is an album that chucks up few surprises preferring instead to go about its business with little fuss, but maximum enjoyment. In summary, Ride The Void is the sort of album that, had it been released fifteen/twenty years ago, would have been hailed as a classic but, these days, is just a good slice of properly rowdy heavy metal.

Run Time: 55:11
Release Date: January 21, 2013

Track Listing:

01. Archeus
02. Bestia Triumphans
03. Dark Passenger
04. Bleeding Stone
05. Ride The Void
06. Too Decayed To Wait
07. Crosswinds
08. Take It To The Grave
09. Sleep Of Virtue
10. Silence The Scream
11. The Great Artifice
12. Wake Me When It’s Over
13. Rains Of Sorrow
14. Can’t Hide The Wolf (Bonus Track)

Check out the song: “Ride the Void”