Spiritworld – Pagan Rhythms
Release Date: 5th November 2021
Label: Century Media Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Hardcore, Metal, Thrash, Death Metal, Death Western.
FFO: Hawser, All Out War, Tombstoner, Entry.
Review By: Jordan Burton-Morris
Describing themselves as ‘death western’, Spiritworld is the sole vision of Stu Folsom, who has taken the intensity of that desert heat and given it voice on the band’s debut, ‘Pagan Rhythms’, for their new label home, Century Media.
It was that purity of Folsom’s vision that immediately won the band international acclaim on the limited 2020 self-release of ‘Pagan Rhythms’ via Safe Inside Records.
Daniel P. Carter, influential BBC Radio 1 DJ, gave the record almost immediate attention.
Metal Sucks premiered the record with an immediate rave review, stating, “Spiritworld makes the kind of metallic hardcore that sounds like it might actually summon Satan from the lowest depths of Hell.”
Guitarist Gary Holt and vocalist Max Cavalera have also praised the album on social media. The list of plaudits goes on…
The album starts strong on opener and title track Pagan Rhythms, with what sounds like a police commentary below the guitars. The guitars sound bright and almost thrashy, whereas the vocals are dark and guttural. An interesting contrast for sure.
Track three, Unholy Passages, shows the insane skill of both Pridgen and Schrum, Pridgen being the main focus with his fast-paced drumming. The barrage of kicks, snares and crashes set the tone for this song from the off, but as we break down, Schrum delivers a face-melting solo! Night Terrors is similar in this way, starting with a ripping solo on top of the barrage.
I wasn’t going to comment on The Demon Storm necessarily…however, the last minute really catches you off guard, with a weird acoustic section. This helps segue way into the news report on Armageddon Honkytonk & Saloon, which itself has moments without guitar, so the thunderous basslines of Fornof can be heard clearly. This also has an unusual middle section, with what sounds like a police radio, and a woman screaming. Guitars continuing all the while, though.
Finally, the breakneck album closer, Ritual Human Sacrifice, is the cherry on top. The intro guitar riff is one of my favourites, which is backed up by a thunderous bass. The additional backing vocals here are perfectly placed, with each contrasting tone seamlessly integrating with the lead vocals. The ending is quite odd, sounds like a soul song’s vocals have been sampled over the top of the piercing guitars, as the album inevitably draws to a close.
This album can feel a little bizarre and wacky at times, although not too much that it overpowers the sheer brutality of their ‘western death’. Definitely worth a re-release, and fans of the genre (whatever that means) should check it out!
‘Pagan Rhythms’ will be re-released on November 5th via Century Media Records and is now available (physically) for the first time outside of North America. 
(5 / 5)
