I’ve heard the term “caveman riffs” bandied around a bit lately and, whenever I hear the term, I think of the band Primitive Man. If I hear the term in the future, I’ll probably think of Portland Deathgrind outfit Rank and Vile too. Caveman riffs, to me, are slow, plodding, heavy, and sludgy. And, many riffs on Rank and Vile‘s debut “Redistribution of Flesh” fit this bill.
Now, there are other similarities with Primitive Man. For one, both bands have (at least some) left-leaning, politically-driven lyrics. But, there are distinct differences too. Primitive Man are probably a bit more Doomy, while Rank and Vile are probably a bit more Grindy.
So, this should tell you that slow and heavy is not the only trick Rank and Vile have in their bag. The start of “Grey Goo“, for example, has a cool, pacey riff. The diversity in riffage is accompanied by diversity in drumage (Yeah, I just totally made that word up. What are you going to do about it?).
But, in my opinion, Rank and Vile‘s strength is slow and heavy. They do it really well. Although I don’t know what these guys tune to (I don’t have perfect pitch), I reckon they could risk tuning down a bit further. This would make their overall sound even heavier. The brown note is definitely within grasp guys. I say “go for it!”.
Rating – 4/5
Get Rank!
https://rankandvile.bandcamp.com/album/redistribution-of-flesh
The Metal Wanderlust 