Review: “Part One” by Vitalivour

A solo project from multi instrumentalist Joshua Bowden, Vitalivour has been described as “a demonic manifestation of mankind’s grief, rage, hatred and venom, spawned in the repressive Mormon state of Utah” which is probably all the introduction debut EP “Part One” needs, except to say that only drum tracking, mixing and mastering were done at a studio in Aggressive Audio…

…if the description didn’t give it away, Vitalivour is a Death Metal project of thunderous rhythmic pummelling with dirge laden riffs paving the way during “Become” for demonic offerings yet to come. A powerhouse statement piece, the opening cut also brings a sense of Groove with it while the bleak mid cut drop out into dark melody is the sucker punch that no one saw coming. The spoken word moment of “666th Amendment Rites” is cleverly worked, feeding the narrative of the cut which punches hard with a very well put together collection of riffs that give it a real swagger. Vibrant leads pull together “Harbinger of the Last Omen“, which simply adds fuel to an already raging fire, the Gojira inspired dirge laden almost Downtempo finale adding a touch of class to the skull battering. Rounding off an impressive debut EP “Vitalivour Pt.1 (Birth)” punches above its weight with another skull crushing Death Metal anthem that will leave lesser mortals quaking in their boots. Dark and brooding it offers something brutish and heavy without the meandering melodies of the opening cut. Put simply, forget about rehab, we want more! [7.5/10]

Track Listing

1. Become (ft. Dennis Bowden)
2. 666th Amendment Rites
3. Harbinger of the Last Omen
4. Vitalivour Pt.1 (Birth)

“Part One” by Vitalivour is out now and available over at bandcamp.