It's no secret that it's not easy to get noticed in Death Metal. It's been a genre that has had troubled times and sometimes putting your twist on things can get you noticed. As for Brutal Death Metal, well it has come and gone, and even bands nowadays copy it, note by note. I always felt there wasn't that much evolution in these bands and you always wanted to listen to other genres because you get sick of the same old stuff.

Technical Death Metal is another matter all itself. It has had a resurgence in the last few years because of a number of bands but if I would put a band on the pedestal on being the definitive current band in the genre, well it would be OMNIUM GATHERUM. Following the footsteps in giants like MESHUGGAH and GOJIRA, they have crafted a sound of their own.

Well Australia's own THE RITUAL AURA have taken a lot of elements from these bands. No they are definitely not on the same playing field as these bands but they have showed a lot of promise on their second full-length album. They are showing a great maturity for such a young band and have honed their immense talent. It may sound quite repetitive at times (I compare them to bands like FEAR FACTORY), sometimes it feels overdone but it's still enjoyable. It's less of a headache than some bands that repeat the same riff in every song. They do repeat themselves (well pattern-wise) but they is so much depth to their songs.

The fact that this bands talk about lore and fantasy, compared to bands that talk about science-fiction or dystopia of human kind. They have dug deep and elaborated on a number of themes that you don't usually hear about, especially in Death Metal. They talk alot about Japanese Legends and the essential Mythology on one of the most celebrated countries in the world. The folklore and the extraordinary creatures in Japanese Lore are incalculable. Their so much depth and so much about it that you can make hundreds and hundreds of albums and just barely scratch the surface.

The vocals are on point, not too aggressive; you can hear most of the words that he is singing thankfully. It's still something I really enjoy when I listen to anything (in any genre actually), hearing what the singer says, you can really connect with that band. It's something I can't really put my finger on it but when you can related to what he is singing, it's magical.

This band is not really well known but they have so much promise that I hope they get noticed outside of their native Australia. They may not be on the same level as the bands I mentioned beforehand but they are crafting something really great here and I'd love to hear more music from them in the next few years.