Photo by Marcus Marino
Today, Florida crossover thrash bringers RHYTHM OF FEAR are pleased to unveil their Fatal Horizons full-length via MNRK Heavy! In celebration of the record’s release, the band has unleashed a video for the track “Alien Synthesis,” now playing at Metal Injection.
Committed to unrelenting riffage, RHYTHM OF FEAR worships at the altar of thrash metal and crossover reinvigorating the timeless collision of speed, musicianship, and attitude. Unrepentant bruisers like “Dark Energy” and “Ten Theories” quickly became underground classics to a growing legion of like-minded supporters who snapped up the band’s 2011 demo, the Mass Illusion EP (2015), and full-length debut, Maze Of Confusion (2016). The appetite for devastation only intensified with the Ritual Dementia EP (2019), featuring “Vortex Of Torment,” and RHYTHM OF FEAR’s impassioned take on “Over And Out,” a deep cut from the early power metal years of Pantera.
Now the band returns with Fatal Horizons, a sophomore slab of expertly executed crossover fury. Produced, engineered, and mixed by Joey Jones (Royal Thunder, Cloak) with sci-fi/horror artwork from Mario Lopez (Toxik, Skeletal Remains, Evil Invaders), Fatal Horizons’ thirteen-tracks are richly thematic and devilishly accessible in equal measure.
Issues the band of the video, “‘Alien Synthesis’ is a bit of a continuation from an earlier track of ours called ‘Fire In The Sky.’ We’re all somewhat obsessed with what else is out there as obviously tied into a lot of our overall imagery. For the video, we wanted to make something super visual, a short quick movie if you will. Of course we were leaning heavily towards a sci-fi horror vibe and wanted to tie in elements of our album art so we joined forces with Eric Ricter who is known to do killer work. We couldn’t be more excited with how it all turned out and hopefully people and aliens alike will be into it.”
Watch RHYTHM OF FEAR’s “Alien Synthesis” video at THIS LOCATION.
View the band’s previously released videos for “Tears Of Ecstasy” at THIS LOCATION and “Insidious System” at THIS LOCATION.
Fatal Horizons is available on CD, LP, cassette, and digitally. Find ordering options at THIS LOCATION.
RHYTHM OF FEAR:
10/20/22 The Beacham – Orlando, Fl w/ Cavalera Conspiracy, Bewitcher
w/ I Am, Bodybox:
11/03/2022 Boozerz – Corpus Christi, TX
11/04/2022 Vibes Underground – San Antonio, TX
11/05/2022 The End – Houston, TX
11/06/2022 Cheapstakes – Dallas, TX
11/07/2022 La Chelsea’s Live – Baton Rouge, LA
11/09/2022 Crowbar – Tampa, FL
11/10/2022 Respectables – West Palm, FL
11/11/2022 The Archetype – Jacksonville, FL
11/12/2022 The Haven – Orlando, FL
11/13/2022 New Brooklyn Tavern – West Columbia, SC
11/14/2022 The End – Nashville, TN
11/15/2022 Vino’s – Little Rock, AR
11/16/2022 The Odyssey – Springfield, MO
11/18/2022 Act Like You Know Fest – Tulsa, OK
RHYTHM OF FEAR’s degree of excellence owes much to the more widely recognized genre forebearers. But perhaps just as crucially, the band – Jay Santiago (vocals), Cody James (guitar), Logan Miano (drums), and Justin Styron (bass) – devours a wide range of diverse and obscure metal bands to craft their own brew.
Chief among those influences is a crucial group of bands active from the late ‘80s to the early ‘90s, whom RHYTHM OF FEAR lovingly refers to as “the trinity,” namely Chicago’s Cyclone Temple (and the ashes of the band Znöwhite), Seattle powerhouse Forced Entry, and Slammer, from the UK. Rather than simply rehash the past however, RHYTHM OF FEAR absorbs and examines metal history’s greatest strengths, reassembling the parts into a fresh Frankenstein forged by the band’s unique identity and experience.
“On Fatal Horizons, we’ve come even more into our own,” notes Santiago. “Maze Of Confusion was very thrash metal and very hardcore driven. Aside from our lead guitar player, all of us grew up in the hardcore scene. We established ourselves as a true crossover band, with fast metal parts and funky hardcore grooves. There’s still a bit of groovy flavor, but Fatal Horizons is even thrashier.”
Thematically, Fatal Horizons delves deeper into the human psyche with relatable themes of depression, addiction, and anger. Alien abduction, magic rituals, and the occult pepper their songs with personality and spirit while the justice system and politics are targets within the framework of broader fantasy metaphors.
Album opener “Obsolescence” confronts addiction. “Alien Synthesis” is about the aftermath of the abduction. The title track puts the listener at the center of a black hole. “Parasomniac” details Santiago’s struggles with the sleep disorder EHS, aka Exploding Head Syndrome, which awakens sufferers with imagined sounds. The simulation hypothesis is at the heart of “Simulated Times,” inspired by one of Santiago’s dreams. There are instrumental interludes throughout Fatal Horizons, synergizing the cosmic themes of mortality. “Ceremony Of Sacrifice” closes it all with an exploration of Mayan and Aztec mythology.
