Origin:	Tokyo, Japan
Genres:	Thrash Metal
DISBANDED

Last update/review:	November 13, 2005

Ritual Carnage

Ritual Carnage was a bi-national band of sorts, led by American Dan Montgomery with the rest of the lineup being Japanese. As the story goes, Montgomery was first stationed in Japan during an Air Force stint in the late 80's, and then returned to Japan in 1993 to learn tattooing and martial arts, and it was at that time that Ritual Carnage was born. Several lineups ensued before the bands scored a contract with Osmose Records in 1998, and four albums were recorded, the last being I, Infidel in late 2005. Ritual Carnage was rooted firmly in hardened old-school thrash, with some death metal influences that have lessened over time (the debut, The Highest Law, is almost a death/thrash mixture, with the followup, Every Nerve Alive, being thrash with only minor death stylings, and the third, The Birth Of Tragedy, being a straight thrash album). Montgomery's vocals have followed this trend, being more deathy on the earlier albums and more thrash-oriented on Tragedy. The Highest Law is somewhat simplistic song-wise, but the latter two albums are excellent examples of pure thrash done right.