Rvkkvs “Antithesis of Prosperity”
Rvkkvs serves up Kiwi death grind on the band’s debut album. This is extreme metal, and the tracks are short, but it’s anything but one-dimensional. It’s glorious stuff.
It’s grind but (maybe) not as you know it. Blasts, of course, are mandatory and sampling may seem a familiar trope of the genre, but many facets of “Antithesis of Prosperity” serve to elevate Rvkkvs well beyond the steaming pile of standard predictability beneath. Of all of them, authenticity is key. And it is this honesty that will keep grindcore and death metal connoisseurs spinning this record, long after their eardrums have been pulverised into a paste. The band simply sound like they mean it. Rvkkvs hail from New Zealand and are releasing “Antithesis of Prosperity” on November 22nd with the help of Australian metal and punk label Grindhead Records. Recorded at Dynamic Rage studios in Auckland, New Zealand, this is the band’s first release. With nine tracks across a grand total of 17 minutes, there’s very little time to be wasted. Mercifully, those aforementioned samples serve to pull the thing together rather than eat up valuable space where riffs could be. If the sampling does affect the pacing of the album for the listener, it will be in the second track, “Glass Face”. Its entire one-minute and 40-second length is effectively rendered an instrumental track as a result and could perhaps have been better placed further along the tracklist. However, this is but a minor and perhaps inconsequential quibble when the many strengths of the album are afforded their due acknowledgement.
Tracks like opener “Shachiku” and mid-album highlight “Kleptomaniac”, speak to what may be expected elsewhere – precision riffs and blasts punctuated by some pleasantly unexpected artistry. The middle third of “Shachiku”, for example, includes tremolo riffage that offers blackened hints of atmosphere most bands simply don’t have the means nor inclination to pop into a grindcore song of just over a minute-and-a-half. “Kleptomaniac” is an elite extreme metal song highlighting what Rvkkvs are capable of. The drumming and varied vocals shine, as does the band’s songwriting ability and cohesion. It’s quite obvious the members of Rvkkvs are bringing together varied influences and contributing unique ideas. The payoff is that it happens to work for them. “Recidivist Reprobate” is the lead single and, at the time of writing, the only part of “Antithesis of Prosperity” currently available for public streaming consumption (make sure to check out the live version on YouTube for what might be expected if Rvkkvs ever make it to your town – “Rvkkvs – Recidivist Reprobate – Live at Full Noise 2024”). On the album version, the one-minute and 42-second runtime begins with a spoken word sample over a frantic buzzing riff before crashing into a bouncy mid-section, eventually falling into a second-half crescendo of equal parts bounce and buzz. This is extreme metal, and the tracks are short, but it’s anything but one-dimensional. It’s glorious stuff.
If pushed to point out a grumble, the listener might cite length or lack thereof. Upon reaching the end of “Antithesis of Prosperity”, it’s difficult to tell if “always leave them wanting more” was the motto of Walt Disney, P.T. Barnum or indeed, those who dare “bring da motherfuckin’” Rvkkvs! I want to hear more of what this band can do. Literally. “Trapped In Vain Decline” is an obvious example despite being the second-longest track on the album. The high-pitched blackened screams atop the breakdown section beginning mid-track could go on another whole minute and I’d eat up every second of it. Perhaps the sheer ability and execution of the players cannot be truly displayed within the constraints of short, sharp grindcore songs. Herein lies the dichotomy of this fine band’s first release – what may read like criticism is also a compliment. I want to hear more Rvkkvs and if you dabble in death and grind, the safe bet is you will too.
Review by Nathan Eden.
