If it feels like we’re living in end times right now, then there isn’t much better music to accompany the crumbling psyche than some death metal. And Like Rats have just the track to get the party started.
If you’re not up to speed with Like Rats material, you might remember them leaning more in the direction of metallic hardcore with dashes of death. However, there’s been a tectonic shift as Like Rats has shifted into a full-on death metal band with Death Monolith. And their latest single “Crimson Cosmos” is the band splitting the sky like a sheet and reigning down that death sound.
For context, vocalist Dan Polak says: “The Crimson Cosmos is a galaxy that hides aeons away, tucked somewhere between what we know as space and time. It is where chaos reigns. Living within the madness is a trinity of Watchers that warn of the collapse of life on planets throughout the universe when the natural order of things is meddled with.”
The video, created by Frank Huang, accompanies the message and mood of the music well. A crushing song that trudges between melo-death and pummeling. Meanwhile, visions of planets and stars burning, the worlds erupting, cosmic storms as well as satellite video of the moon and footage of the Earth play out. It’s scenic in a lot of ways and, well, monolithic in others.
The song itself begins simply enough. And then Like Rats bring the hammer down and the song kicks into gear about a minute in. From there on for Like Rats only keep picking up the intensity. The track begins to open like a chasm that’s going to swallow the world. The intensity persists up until Like Rats kick out some solos and then finally exit the way they entered with another healthy dose of melo-death.
“Crimson Cosmos” is a killer slice from Death Monolith and only another taste of things to come. The album releases April 10th. Don’t miss out. Preorder here.
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