“A sound born from dirt, blood, and the night sky.”
We as humans are often at our most creative when it comes to being practiced sadists. It’s also just as apparent that we’re not shy about serenading atrocities either. In many ways, proper neanderthal death metal is the modern soundtrack for human savagery. Colorado-based and relative newcomers Aleister Cowboy certainly appear to be very familiar with that notion. With two gut-stomper EPs under their belts, there’s hardly been any shortage of quick and painful mangling in their discography thus far. Neolithic Blood Rites stands as their evolutionary step from a sonic standpoint and fits in every torturous methodology imaginable throughout its four-track flaying.
For an EP that’s predominantly mid-tempo, Aleister Cowboy gives the feeling of painstaking live organ removal. Those beloved human blender vocals and meat milkshake riffs are omnipresent without any ounce of contriteness. As many will quickly find out, the vile string work and full tilt drumming of “Leachate of Abandoned Gods” know when to drag out subjugated suffering before putting us out of our misery. This serves to be fully indicative of the rest of Neolithic Blood Rites: structurally sound persecution that echoes the deafening whales of its lyrical subjects.
One of death metal’s forebearers has yet again shit-birthed a distorted progeny, and Undeath may be the likely broodmare. The guitar work on Neolithic Blood Rites is very reminiscent of Torture-era Cannibal Corpse, but the vocals and techier sections have taken a page out of Undeath’s book. This combination of sear-your-face-off-with-a-hot-iron tones and varied shifts exacerbates the weight of each malformed offering Aleister Cowboy provides.
Atmospherically, Neolithic Blood Rites sustains a macabre feeling that never waivers. “Liquefied Bodies Scraped From a Tub” bellows the last breaths of the unlucky victims of systematic slaughter atop shrapnel rain instrumentals, whilst “Tireless Autosarcophagy” plunges deep into a vat of magma thanks to a surprising switch up to a mostly breakneck-paced outing. Every executioner basks in the anguish of those who find themselves under the cleaver, and Aleister Cowboy have perfected their means of murderous infliction.
For as tremendous a showcase of death-laden prowess that Aleister Cowboy displays here, it would be a bit remiss not to be somewhat let down by a short run time on Neolithic Blood Rites. Aleister Cowboy have irrefutably expanded their auditory aptitude tenfold, and that may leave a fair bit of folks frustratingly eager for more from this EP. Even so, this is essentially nitpicky to a default, and there’s bound to be plenty of people who take the perspective of high replay value because of its short length. Whichever side of the aisle you find yourself on, however, no one will question the sheer veracity of Neolithic Blood Rites. Whether it’s over too quickly or just extended enough, Neolithic Blood Rites is a dragged-by-horse ride over asphalt with a barbed-wire noose around the neck that leaves no doubt of Aleister Cowboy’s rightful place among some of death metal’s most promising up-and-comers.
The third time is usually the charm. For Aleister Cowboy, this couldn’t be truer. As Neolithic Blood Rites in no way diminishes the quality of CHAMBERS OF ANGUISH or RELENTLESS REPUGNANCE, it is vastly superior in every comparative facet. For most, the next logical step would be to release a full-length album. Even if Aleister Cowboy forego that route, it’s hard to fathom anyone would complain should they continue to build upon what they’ve crafted here. Their brand of unga bunga death metal is a freight train mowing through a funeral procession, and every sign points to that characteristic becoming exponentially more obvious for Aleister Cowboy as time goes on.
8/10
Neolithic Blood Rites releases on October 17 via Iron Fortress Records and can be purchased here.