Andrew Lee’s one of the busier musicians in West Coast death metal and grindcore, releasing material every year with a slew of different projects. 2020 is once again a busy year, with albums from Azath and Lee’s main project Ripped to Shreds coming out on the same day. Normally this level of productivity might result in underdeveloped ideas or repetitive riffs but Ripped to Shreds’ sophomore effort 亂 (Luan) avoids this with tighter performances that retain the fury and weight of old-school death metal in all its forms. It flies by quickly and the writing still wears its influences on its sleeves, but there’s enough variation and unexpected moments to keep listeners interested in everything Lee has to offer.
亂 (Luan) starts off in a very different fashion than you might be expecting, as rather than the haunting guitar driven intro that would be typical for this type of death metal Ripped to Shreds instead opts for a synth driven track that has a haunting and ghastly feel that catches you off guard before “Righteous Fist to the Teeth of the Wicked” kicks in with the familiar buzzsaw attack. The intro and interlude that appear on the album were done by Tom Warrior (Death Fortress) and they not only help to break up the onslaught and provide a calm before the next storm, but suit the atmosphere that the rest of the album is able to create. Lee’s still got a knack for channeling that buzzsaw HM-2 sound that has dominated Swedish death metal for decades, but the writing doesn’t simply copy one old-school act and call it a day. There’s a noticeable emphasis on speed with only a few moments really slowing things down to a crawl, and with the speed comes some grind and punk influences on some of the riffs and drum patterns. It’s subtle, but the additional influences help to make some of the individual songs distinguishable from each other and that makes a big difference. Admittedly with how fast the album goes there are some moments that blur together without truly grabbing me from one spin to the next but Ripped to Shreds still gives plenty of substance to latch on to. It’s also worth mentioning that there are guest guitar leads from the likes of Takafumi Matsubara (Gridlink), Phil Tougas (Chthe'ilist), and Damian Herring (Horrendous) which spice things up a bit more and each one shines without completely overshadowing what Lee has been able to achieve.
The vocals remain consistently in your face from beginning to end, with the main pitch coming through as a lower pitched growl that has an ugly and grimy feel to it. Lee starts off with an immense amount of power on each verse and seems to only get more distorted the further into each song you get, with the pitch moving up towards the higher end of the spectrum at the peaks in a way that’s likely to send chills down your spine. It’s a familiar approach but one that’s done well here, with the vocals being standing slightly above the instrumentation and giving off a commanding presence. Songs like “白骨精 (White Bone Spirit)” are a perfect example of what Ripped to Shreds has to offer, as the vocals wail with a ghostlike presence over the slower guitar solo before unleashing hell upon the listener.
In just two years Ripped to Shreds has put out two full lengths, an EP, and a demo yet they show little sign of slowing down. Given the quality of each of these, that pace doesn’t seem like a bad thing and this second album finds the project continuing its concise and bludgeoning old-school attack while still offering just enough fresh ideas to captivate fans of the style. There may be a few songs that blurred together but given the quick length it’s still warranted plenty of repeat listens. 亂 (Luan) is available from Pulverised Records.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg
If you enjoyed this article, be sure to share it with others to help us grow. You can also like and follow us on the social media of your choice with Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and support us on Patreon.