In Dante’s Inferno, the second circle begins the proper punishment of Hell, a place where “no thing gleams.” It is reserved for those overcome with Lust, where carnal appetites hold sway over reason. In Nine Circles, it’s where we do shorter reviews of new (ish) albums that share a common theme.
There was the briefest of moments, listening to the second album in the span of two weeks from New Mexico’s Void Ritual that I got angry. It was a green-tinged anger, the kind that could only come from the jealous realization that here was a man doing what I was attempting to do, but doing it with a breadth and passion and technical execution I would always dream of but never achieve. And twice in August! It’s like that sometimes, and it passes quickly enough when I remember I didn’t corner the market on crippling self doubt. It also helps that Daniel Jackson, the man behind Void Ritual is by all accounts (including my own) a hell of a good guy so for this edition of Second Circle I put aside my childish envy and revel in my admiration to engage with his latest two full-lengths. Continue reading
Nine Circles 