Riotgod – Driven Rise
Release Date: March 18, 2014
Highlights: Driven Rise, They Don’t Know, Grenade and Pin, Melisandre, You’re My Waste of Time, Beg for Power
When Riotgod released their debut album in 2010, I can remember being so pleasantly excited hearing this band that sounded like a mix between Captain Beyond and Alice in Chains! It was a really cool modern twist on an old sound and they really got me excited. They were all of my favorite things about heavy music in one band. An amazing vocalist, thought provoking lyrics, and riff driven psychedelic hard rock music. What more could a boy ask for?
When Riotgod released their follow up “Invisible Empire” I remember feeling kind of let down. For some reason, this particular album seemed to lack the consistency and focus that the debut had. “Invisible Empire” just seemed to be all over the place and just kind of left me scratching my head. I felt like Riotgod had lost their way a little bit but I wasn’t going write these guys off just yet. I’m so glad I stuck to my guns because the minute the first track “Driven Rise” from 2014’s album of the same name it was made clear that Riotgod has returned to form. As a matter of fact, with Driven Rise it seems like they’ve picked up right where their 2010 debut left off as this album is a much more suiting successor.
Driven Rise is 10 songs of face melting, riff driven psychedelic rock that will pique your brain and lure you in with infectious riffs, melodies, and powerful yet soulful vocals. With songs like the Deep Purple tinged “Sidewinder”, the Alice in Chains sound of “Melisandre”, and the Zepplinesque “You’re My Waste of Time”, Riotgod is obviously a band that is not afraid to wear their influences on their sleeve but they do so while not sounding like a direct carbon copy of these bands. The song “They Don’t Know” is a prime example of taking everything they know and creating a goulash all their own. This song is without a doubt Riotgod’s greatest moment. I must’ve repeated this song 4 times on the album’s first listen. Riotgod really sounds like a band with an identity and at this point in the game are sounding like a much more distinct band than ever before. If they keep putting out music like this, it won’t be long before you start hearing people say, “Hey, that band sounds like Riotgod.”
Driven Rise is a grand piece of rock on roll that is cohesive, easy to swallow, and even easier to digest. It is a really great listen and there are so many layers and depths to the songwriting and the overall structure of these songs. Driven Rise has exceeded all of my expectations of not just how a Riotgod album should sound but what a great hard rock record should sound like. Driven Rise is Riotgod shouting from the mountain that we’ve only begun to see what this band is capable of delivering.
For more on Riotgod, visit http://www.riotgod.com/
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