Photo by: Mike Truehart
Rivers of Nihil have announced their fourth full-length album, The Work. The record is scheduled for release on September 24th through Metal Blade Records and is available for pre-order in a variety of formats here. Additionally, the group have debuted a music video for the album’s first single, “Clean”, which can be found below.
Guitarist Brody Uttley, who describes the album as a “sound world” , a term coined by a friend, said about it:
“We didn’t really know if it was all going to connect together in any kind of logical or interesting way. It wasn’t until we got the vocals done that it was clear what we had on our hands: something that actually somehow all worked together.
It’s an album that almost sounds like a place rather than a thing. It puts you in this world where you’re not exactly sure what is going on at certain points, but eventually, it all comes together. It’s harsh and cold, but also warm and inviting.”
Regarding writing the album, he offers:
“I don’t think on any other release I was able to insulate myself from external noise like I did on this one. The amount of work that went into it is obscene, but I felt like I was just floating through this ‘sound world’ the whole time, kinda grabbing ideas off of the vine and seeing how they worked.”
The experience was different for lyricist/bassist Adam Biggs, who shares:
“It felt like a huge demand to get this record written during one of the weirdest times imaginable. It gets to the point sometimes after a lot of touring that you can forget how to be creative, because you’ve just been playing your – now old – material for several years. Writing this record, for me, meant almost entirely reconnecting with creativity after what I’d consider to be a lengthy hiatus.”
On the sonic diversity found on The Work, Biggs adds:
“It spans a lot of different styles, ideas, and emotions. The twists and turns are pretty drastic for your modern day metal record. There’s a lot of what you already know we do, and a lot of what you’ve never heard us do before.”
Regarding the central concept of the effort, Biggs has chosen to keep specifics to himself in order to allow the listener to form their own opinion. He said:
“What does life all really boil down to in the end? You can be lovey-dovey about the good times, and savor the sweetness that life sometimes provides, but beneath everything is work, struggle, someone is always getting a raw deal, someone’s always sweating it out in the mines somewhere so you can enjoy your diamonds. This has always proved true in everything I’ve ever done in life. Most people reading this know me as a member of a successful band, but beneath it is constant work. Physical, emotional, spiritual work. All the time. Every day. And I know that it’s like this across the board for just about anyone in at least some capacity, so I figured this subject would be relatable to a lot of people.”
Guitars and synths/keys were tracked at guitarist Uttley’s home studio, with drums, vocals, bass, sax, and mixing handled at Atrium Audio by Carson Slovak and Grant McFarland.
Prior to the record’s release, Rivers of Nihil will embark on the Up From The Sewer Tour later this summer with The Black Dahlia Murder, After The Burial, Carnifex, and Undeath. You can find the dates here.
The Work track listing:
- “The Tower (Theme from “The Work”)”
- “Dreaming Black Clockwork”
- “Wait”
- “Focus”
- “Clean”
- “The Void from Which No Sound Escapes”
- “MORE?”
- “Tower 2”
- “Episode”
- “Maybe One Day”
- “Terrestria IV: Work”
Rivers of Nihil is:
Jake Dieffenbach – lead vocals
Brody Uttley – lead guitar, keyboards
Adam Biggs – bass, backing vocals
Jon Topore – rhythm guitar
Jared Klein – drums, backing vocals