Ritual (Soulfly album)

Ritual
Studio album by
Soulfly
ReleasedOctober 19, 2018 (2018-10-19)
RecordedJanuary–June 2018
Studio
Genre
Length43:13
LabelNuclear Blast[1]
ProducerJosh Wilbur[1]
Soulfly chronology
Archangel
(2015) 		Ritual
(2018) 		Totem
(2022)
Singles from Ritual
  1. "Evil Empowered"
    Released: August 9, 2018[2]
  2. "Ritual"
    Released: August 31, 2018[3]
  3. "Dead Behind the Eyes"
    Released: September 14, 2018[4]
  4. "Under Rapture"
    Released: October 19, 2018[5]

Ritual is the eleventh studio album by American heavy metal band Soulfly, released on October 19, 2018, through Nuclear Blast.[2][1] It is the third Soulfly album with Max Cavalera's son Zyon behind the drum kit, and the last album to feature lead guitarist Marc Rizzo, and features musical guests Randy Blythe of Lamb of God, Ross Dolan of Immolation, and Mark Damon of The Pretty Reckless.[6] Four singles were released from the album—"Evil Empowered",[2] title track "Ritual",[3] "Dead Behind the Eyes",[4] and "Under Rapture".[5]

The album was produced by Josh Wilbur. Max Cavalera published the statement and said: "For this one, we really tried to retain the groove of early Soulfly as well as my love for the heavy, fast stuff I'm into: like death and black metal and some hardcore. Working with Josh Wilbur for Soulfly this time around has been amazing. He's a huge fan and added a lot to the record. I would fight for the fast songs and he would always push me to add more groove. I think in the end we created a really cool mix of songs that covers a lot of ground in my career".[6]

Ritual sold 3,600 copies in its first week of release in the US and is the first Soulfly album to not debut on the US Billboard 200. It is their first album since 2010's Omen to have its installment of their self-titled song series on the standard edition.

Reception

Ritual received generally favorable reviews by critics, with the aggregate score of 75% on Metacritic. Prior to release, Wall of Sound writer Jim Birkin rated the album 9/10, stating: "There is undoubtedly some old school Cavalera creeping into his music these days and that can only be a good thing. May all future Soulfly albums contain Josh Wilbur in its production."[7] This album was awarded a 2018 Metal Storm Award for Best Thrash Metal Album.[8]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Max Cavalera

No.TitleLength
1."Ritual"4:55
2."Dead Behind the Eyes" (featuring Randy Blythe)5:17
3."The Summoning"4:15
4."Evil Empowered"3:33
5."Under Rapture" (featuring Ross Dolan)5:42
6."Demonized"4:42
7."Blood on the Street"4:32
8."Bite the Bullet"3:52
9."Feedback!"3:00
10."Soulfly XI" (instrumental)3:25
Total length:43:13

Personnel

Charts

Chart (2018) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[9] 22
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[10] 47
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[11] 78
Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)[12] 58
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[13] 147
French Albums (SNEP)[14] 125
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] 27
Scottish Albums (OCC)[16] 51
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[17] 19

References

  1. ^ a b c MAX CAVALERA On Next SOULFLY Record: 'It's A Tribal Thrash Album. It's Never Been Done Quite Like That. Blabbermouth. February 25, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c Soulfly Announce New Album Ritual, Unleash "Evil Empowered" single. Consequence of Sound.
  3. ^ a b Soulfly Release Single for Title-Track of New Album, Ritual. MetalSucks.
  4. ^ a b Soulfly Debut 'Dead Behind the Eyes' Feat. Lamb of God's Randy Blythe. Consequence of Sound.
  5. ^ a b Soulfly | New Single 'Under Rapture' Available! - The Beast. Metal Devastation Radio.
  6. ^ a b Soulfly Return with New Album 'Ritual'. Exclaim!.
  7. ^ "Soulfly – Ritual (Album Review)". Wall Of Sound. October 15, 2018. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  8. ^ "Metal Storm Awards 2018". Metal Storm. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  9. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Soulfly – Ritual" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2018.
  10. ^ "Ultratop.be – Soulfly – Ritual" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2018.
  11. ^ "Ultratop.be – Soulfly – Ritual" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2018.
  12. ^ "Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 43.Týden 2018 on the field besides the words "CZ – ALBUMS – TOP 100" to retrieve the correct chart. Retrieved October 30, 2018.
  13. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Soulfly – Ritual" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  14. ^ "Lescharts.com – Soulfly – Ritual". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  15. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Soulfly – Ritual" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved October 26, 2018.
  16. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
  17. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Soulfly – Ritual". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2018.