[photo by Gabrielle Dolceamore]
As New Jersey-based quartet RISK RELAY finalizes their fourth full-length, As We Descend, through Nefarious Industries in November, the public’s first preview of the album has been made available through an exclusive stream of the track “My Weight Disappearing,” now playing at Metal Insider.
Closing a three-year gap between releases, RISK RELAY sought out new inspirational energy and direction for the creation of this new concept recording. As We Descend was recorded between March and June of 2016 in full analog to 2″ tape, engineered by RISK RELAY drummer Brian Buccellato at his own Volume IV studio in New Brunswick, and mastered by Alan Douches at West West Side. The lyrics for As We Descend are inspired by the late nineteenth-century science fiction novel, Etidorhpa, which depicts the story of a man banished to an alternate world within the center of the Earth, this theme also reflected in the artwork created by Bryan Elkins.
Collectively offers RISK RELAY of the first single from As We Descend, “‘My Weight Disappearing’ is a reminder to the idle thinker that the droning process and the clawing mundane is driven out with a ghost of another kind. Led by his faceless guide through a fungus forest, a drunkard’s den and endless trenches of stalagmites, ‘The-Man-Who-Did-It’ loses the weight of his conventional reasoning and witnesses the promise of future science.”
Metal Insider notes of the track, “it’s heavy, but also draws from Amphetamine Reptile-style noise rock and the New Brunswick basement show indie scene that the band emerged from. It’s a unique, yet familiar sound.”
Explore RISK RELAY’s “My Weight Disappearing” only at Metal Insider RIGHT HERE.
As We Descend will see release through Nefarious Industries on November 18th on all digital platforms as well as 180-gram 12″ LP, with 200 copies on white vinyl and 220 copies on black. Preorders are now live at THIS LOCATION.
While there is still a nod to the frenetic buzz of their earlier work, As We Descend showcases a very apparent evolution in RISK RELAY‘s songwriting and arrangements. The trademark dissonant guitar interplay from Ed Dailey and Mark Weinberg remains, as do the intricate, syncopated rhythms, brought by Buccellato’s drumming and Steve Bumgarner’s basslines. Dailey’s intelligent lyrics guide the listener on a journey through the abyss, reflecting the emotional distress of the book’s main character, longing for both what he’s seen and what remains to be seen. Some of the vocal effects were achieved by setting up mics in large, echoing staircases, and Buccellato deployed his feedback guitar technique on the song “My Weight Disappearing,” which has been a staple of every album thus far. In the end, re-emerging from the subterranean, we encounter the band’s most engaging collection of songs to date.
RISK RELAY continues to book new shows in support of As We Descend, including a record release show on December 10th, with more live actions to be announced soon.
RISK RELAY Live:
11/19/2016 Pino’s – Highland Park, NJ w/ Black Wine, Secretary Legs
12/10/2016 The Hive – Jersey City, NJ *record release show w/ Twin God
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