Ribspreader is one of those bands that never
sleeps. Formed in 2002 by the unstoppable Rogga
Johansson, they have been a constant force in Swedish death metal,
releasing a steady stream of albums that carry the classic tradition of the
style while always sounding distinctly their own. Johansson’s
name is already tied to countless projects like Paganizer,
Putrevore, Revolting,
and The Grotesquery, yet Ribspreader remains one of his most direct outlets
for raw, straightforward death metal. For their 11th full-length “As Gods
Devour”, Johansson teams up once again with
guitarist Håkan Stuvemark (Wombbath) and drummer Jon
Rudin (Just Before Dawn), forming a
line-up that knows exactly how to deliver bone-crushing heaviness.
“As Gods
Devour” is a 9-track, half-hour plunge into the classic Swedish death metal
pit. The guitars bear that buzzing, chainsaw-like tone that made the Stockholm
sound legendary, with riffs stomping along in both mid-tempo grooves and faster
assaults. Stuvemark’s leads cut through with
just enough twisted melody to give the songs character, while Rudin’s drumming stays relentless, pushing the
pace when needed and keeping everything pounding with precision. Johansson’s vocals remain a rotten growl, guttural
and unearthly, giving the album its grim atmosphere.
Songs like “Massgrave Madness” and “Rotten Soil Serenade” drip with the kind of filth and aggression that fans of Dismember and Grave will recognize instantly, while “As Corpses Cry” and “Deadhunter” bring in darker, more atmospheric riffing without straying from the core brutality. The production is dirty but powerful, keeping the instruments raw and natural without sanding down the rough edges that give death metal its character.
Ribspreader knows
the essence of the genre and “As Gods Devour” is another slab of chainsaw
riffing, guttural growls, and crushing rhythms that will satisfy anyone who
hungers for authentic Swedish death metal. The whole album clocks in just under
33 minutes, making it a compact blast of death metal that gets in, hits hard,
and leaves no space wasted. It’s brutal, it’s rotten, and it does exactly what Ribspreader set out to do; deliver Swedish death
metal in its purest, nastiest form. This album is proof that death metal
doesn’t need to be complicated to be effective.
Score: 7.0
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