Listen: Mantic Ritual return with ‘Crusader’; first new music for over a decade

The new single from Mantic Ritual sees the Pittsburgh thrash band tapping into everything you’ve ever loved about the seemingly unsinkable metal sub-genre. ‘Crusader’ mixes Testament-like riffs with the speed of old Exciter tunes, but for that full on authentic feel, it features a brattish vocal that recalls the carefree style of the young James Hetfield circa 1983, complete with the kind of reverb present on the early 80s thrash releases.

It’s got such an authentically old sound, you might even struggle to believe it had been recorded in the twenty first century.  What’s more, it has so much bluster and confidence, it definitely doesn’t sound like the work of a band who were last active back in 2009.

The reunited Mantic Ritual – featuring original members Dan Wetmore (vox/g), Jeff Potts (g), Ben Mottsman (b) and new drummer Carlos Cruz (ex-Warbringer) more than mean business. If classic, old school thrash is your bag, then ‘Crusader’ is a track not to be missed.  As a taster of things to come, it’s absolutely fantastic.  You can stream the new single in full below.

A limited edition 7″, featuring ‘Crusader’ backed with a cover of Mercyful Fate’s ‘Black Funeral’ is set to be released in early 2022. UK buyers can be pre-order it via Plastic Head, here. US buyers can pre-order it from the Mantic Ritual Bandcamp page.  (Bandcamp is also an option for UK buyers, but shipping costs make going through Plastic Head a more viable option.)