Ritual. (Master's Hammer album)

Ritual. is the debut album by Czech black metal band Master's Hammer, initially released through independent label Monitor in 1991. It was later distributed elsewhere and re-released in CD format by Osmose Productions in 1994; Osmose's version contains two bonus tracks. Many tracks of the album were re-recorded from their 1990 demo tape The Fall of Idol.

Ritual.
Studio album by
ReleasedFebruary 1991 (Czech Republic)
1994 (worldwide)
Recorded5–9 December 1990 at Studio C
GenreBlack metal
Length40:03 (vinyl)
50:25 (CD)
LabelMonitor (Czech Republic)
Osmose Productions (worldwide)
ProducerMiloš Doležal
Master's Hammer chronology
The Fall of Idol
(1990)
Ritual.
(1991)
Klavierstück
(1991)

The track "Jáma pekel" would eventually be re-recorded for Master's Hammer's 2009 album Mantras.

Music videos were made for the tracks "Černá svatozář"[1] and "Géniové".[2]

The track "Útok" was dedicated to Church of Satan founder Anton LaVey.

Covers

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Polish blackened death metal band Behemoth covered "Jáma pekel" on their 2008 EP Ezkaton. Their version counted with a guest appearance by Root vocalist Jiří "Big Boss" Valter.

Critical reception

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The band once claimed that Ritual. sold over 25,000 copies in the Czech Republic alone.[3] It is considered to be one of the major albums responsible for defining the early Czech black metal scene of the late 1980s/early to mid-1990s, alongside Root's Zjevení (1990) and Maniac Butcher's Barbarians (1995).

Rock Hard magazine featured Ritual. on their list "250 Black Metal Albums You Should Know".[4]

Fenriz of the band Darkthrone called it "the first Norwegian black metal album, even though they are from Czechoslovakia".[5]

Track listing

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All lyrics are written by Franta Štorm; all music is composed by Master's Hammer (Štorm, Necrocock, Monster, Mirek Valenta and Silenthell)

No.TitleEnglish title[6]Length
1."King of the Bohemian Forest (Intro)" (instrumental) 0:52
2."Pád modly"The Fall of the Idol6:29
3."Každý z nás...!"Each of Us...!3:30
4."Ritual" (instrumental) 3:16
5."Géniové"Wizards5:06
6."Černá svatozář"Black Halo5:33
7."Věčný návrat"Eternal Return3:24
8."Jáma pekel"Hell's Mouth4:18
9."Útok"Attack7:31
1994 Osmose re-release bonus tracks
No.TitleEnglish titleLength
9."Zapálili jsme onen svět"We Have Burned the Other World4:36
10."Vykoupení"Deliverance5:34

Personnel

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  • František "Franta" Štorm – vocals, guitars, photography, cover art
  • Tomáš "Necrocock" Kohout – guitars
  • Tomáš "Monster" Vendl – bass
  • Miroslav "Mirek" Valenta – drums
  • Honza "Silenthell" Přibyl – timpani
  • Vlastimil "Vlasta" Voral – keyboards
  • Milan Fibiger – bass (on tracks 6, 7, 8 and 10)
  • Miloš "Dodo" Doležal – production

References

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  1. ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z42uQ0qZqpo
  2. ^ Master's Hammer – Géniové
  3. ^ Kühnemund, Götz. "Master's Hammer. The Jilemnice Occultist". Rock Hard (73). Retrieved 24 September 2012.
  4. ^ "250 Black-Metal-Alben, die man kennen sollte". Rock Hard (269): 75. October 2009.
  5. ^ Fenriz (21 November 2009). "Darkthrone Biography and Video Clips by Darkthrone on MySpace". Myspace. Archived from the original on 26 November 2009. Retrieved 24 September 2012.
  6. ^ The Heretic's Torch: Master's Hammer English Language Translations