Riff Of The Week: Dan Seagrave Edition
Riffs from Dismember, Ossuarium, Edge Of Sanity, Warbringer, Benediction, Xibalba, Unravel, Stortregn, Deny The Urge, and Landmine Marathon. Pick your fave.
Before we dive deep into Dan’s Seagravy, let’s take a look at the results from last week’s Coffin Edition. Putrescine, one of our stinkiest discoveries from this year took out some big names on the way to claiming an upset victory. Congrats to our resident apiarist Megachiles!
This week’s theme was riffs from albums featuring Dan Seagrave art.
Here’s what you sent in…
Black Metal Porkins
Dismember – “Override of the Overture” (Riff @ 3:39)
How do you choose the best riff from the greatest Swedeath song ever made? Should it be the intro trems breaking through the storm (0:30)? The savage breakdown right after (0:58)? The second breakdown into a thrash groove (3:18)? For me, the answer is at (3:39) when the songs themes culminate in a melodic solo. Or you can just listen to it all because Swedeath could have shut down after this song was made and still have been a Hall of Fame metal subgenre.
McNulty
Warbringer – ‘Severed Reality’ (Riff @ 0:35)
THRASH TIL I CRASH* Warbringer is a great thrash band which everyone needs to listen to and also see live. They riff.
*Die. Not crash in the lovely Altima.
Weaponized Funk
Landmine Marathon – ‘Shadows Fed to Tyrants’ (Riff @ 1:50)
Being a huge Swedish death metal nerd I was of course originally going to pick something off Dismembers debut but then I ran into a problem thats very good to have: too many good riffs. While Landmine Marathon certainly aren’t Swedish, no chainsaw guitars to be found here, they do play damn good death metal.
Hans
Benediction – ‘Blood From Stone’ (Riff @ 1:03)
Immediately jumped at this one when perusing the helpful list posted along with the theme last week. While not familiar enough with the album to pick a riff from memory, this was a most welcome excuse to listen to it again, and holy crap did I have my work cut out for me. Every time I thought I had a worthy contestant, the next killer riff came around the corner, with a surprising number of them sounding very punk-inspired. This one has a little precursor to it where they play a truncated version, but the stamp marks the whole hog. It rules at least as hard as any other on the album, which you should check posthaste if you’ve never heard it.
Iron Goddess of Mercy
Xibalba – “Con Amor” (Riff @ 2:10)
With love to you, my sweet baby breakdowns. You’re all I’ll ever need. <3
Brndn
Edge Of Sanity – ‘The Other Side’ (Riff @ 0:45)
HM-2s on all instruments, roaring Swanö vocals, cracking snare, and that perfect tempo. Is there even any doubt?
Nobody does melody in death metal quite like Edge Of Sanity. This is probably their weakest album for me in terms of straight up riffs, but there’s no Seagrave art on Unorthodox.
ON THE OTH ER SIDE
Spear
Stortregn – ‘The Forge’ (Riff @1:07)
This album has a fuckton of riffs to choose from, but I went with the one I feel best accompanies Seagrave’s art. Those chromatically descending diminished arpeggios have a jaunty alien feeling that really captures the essence of… whatever that thing on the cover is. Point is they’re both cool as hell and equally weird, so put this riff in your ears while you put that art in your eyes.
Megachiles
Ossuarium – ‘Blaze of Bodies’ (Riff @ 3:15)
There are riffs in this song that definitely feel all slow, gloomy, and spooky like you’d expect an ossuary to be, but then there are riffs like the one at 3:15 that are ignorant and groovy as heck. Also look at the dour little guy climbing out of the moat.
vanNeun
Deny The Urge – ‘Medusa’ (Riff @ 0:00)
And if you find it too slow for your taste – go to 1:26.
Lacertilian
Unravel – ‘Reign Of Wasps’ (Riff @ 0:20)
“Wealth is not a status,
Land is not a status,
Power is not a status,
Every life does matter”
Next week we’re looking your riffs must come from a band from Asia
We’re discluding Russia as already we’ve done that recently
Anyone can enter
Submission details below
