With the emergence of bands like Primordial, Waylander and Mourning Beloveth in recent years, Ireland has become home to some of the finest, most unique music in the extreme Metal scene. You can now add For Ruin to that acclaimed list, as if this truly impressive Demo is anything to go by, they have a very bright future ahead of them.
Hailing from Cork in the Republic Of Ireland, For Ruin were formed in 1998 by multi-instrumentalist John G. Murphy, who performs all vocals and instruments on this Demo. Shade is their second Demo, coming after their split demo with fellow Irish metallers Meiche in 2004. Although this recording is a Demo and is thus not fully mastered, the sound quality is surprisingly clear and coherent, displaying a keen sense of dynamics throughout.
While the music of For Ruin sits firmly in the Death/Black Metal category, one thing that is immediately striking is the band's sense of melody and the overall accessibility of their music. While keyboards and atmospherics appear throughout, they do not detract from, nor overshadow, the songs contained within. In fact, it is apparent from the very first listen that For Ruin are a band who strike a fine balance between aggression and melody, while avoiding the pitfalls of sounding pompous or overblown, like so many in the melodic Death/Black genre have had a tendency to do.
Another thing which stands out is the fact that, unlike so many of their contemporaries, For Ruin avoid run-of-the-mill Satanic lyrics and political meanderings, choosing instead to focus on subject matter such as spiralling into depression and dealing with one's inner fears. Also witness the impressive fluidity of the guitar harmonies in opening tracks Dread and Vertigo as a testament to the fine musicianship throughout. Having said that, the instrumental track Rinn Bearna, with its Celtic overtones, is a definite nod to their Irish roots. Also included is a cover of Greek legends' Rotting Christ's The Fourth Knight Of Revelation, which closes the recording in truly epic fashion.
While I am hesitant to resort to namedropping (and thus pigeonholing) when promoting any unsigned bands, it is clear that For Ruin will easily appeal to fans of their aforementioned Irish contemporaries, as well as Rotting Christ and perhaps those who revere the early Emperor classics such as In The Nightside Eclipse and Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk. All in all, a superb effort from a band who are really going places.