ALBUM REVIEW: Rites of Love and Reverence – GosT

The explosion of synthwave within the alternative music world over the last decade has been a sensation. Not only has it presented a brand new genre for rock and metal fans to immerse themselves in, but those who perform it are able to experiment in new and innovative ways; America’s GOST has been doing just that. After making an impact in the middle of the 2010’s with his dark, brooding take on synthwave, 2018’s Possessor brought in more extreme metal elements that were consolidated on Valediction a year later, his first album with Century Media Records. That same label is in place for his sixth album Rites of Love and Reverence, which comes out on August 13th.

With every release, GOST‘s ability to manipulate electronics to his own ends and create something in equal parts uplifting and sinister has grown stronger, and Rites of Love and Perseverance is no different. Although not a straight-up concept album, it revolves around witchcraft, specifically from the feminine perspective. Wanting to tap into the more beautiful side of this oft-denounced area from history, GOST has brought together the shadow and the light in exquisite harmony, creating a record that will hook you in from the first second to the last.

Although Bound By The Horror opens with a barrage of jarring synths that are in stark contrast to the ethereal, spoken word incantation from opening track Bell, Book and Candle, it evolves into a classic synthwave track that retains its evil overtones. In the middle, the three-song curve of A Fleeting Whisper, We Are The Crypt and Blessed Be are bound to fill dancefloors at goth clubs for the foreseeable future, whilst the 80s feel on Embrace the Blade is a lovely throwback to where the whole genre originated in the first place.

Moreover, GOST‘s vocals are deep, sprawling and perfect at conveying the bleakest of lyrics, which at times read like a play written by Sarah Kane. ‘She needs somebody/she needs to feel nothing/Dead leaves fall to the ground‘, a line from November Is Death, is gorgeously poetic; no word feels out of place or thrown in for good measure, they’re all deliberately placed and act as the perfect juxtaposition to the moments where the songs make the listener want nothing more than to throw shapes in the middle of a room with a multitude of lights flashing past their eyes.

The penultimate track, Coven, does this brilliantly as well: the beats and tempo will have limbs moving in synch whilst the words – as the title suggests, all about a ritual – portray the practicing of the dark arts in a way that is almost pleasing, yet downright foreboding. ‘Relinquish mindfulness, we give ourselves to you‘ sings GOST, before he turns on a sixpence and begins screeching lines of Latin interspersed with English, a sudden and unsettling end.

Without question, this is GOST‘s finest work to date, a wonderfully balanced mix of upbeat electronica and menacing movements that are married together to create something truly magical. There is no doubt that he is one of the major players in synthwave today, and this will only elevate his status further. Delving into the occult has never felt so satisfying.

Rating: 9/10

Rites of Love and Reverence is set for release on August 13th via Century Media Records. 

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