Cold Rites is a new experimental electronic project based in Los Angeles, rooted in the witch house genre but branching into a multitude of other dark electronica sub-genres. The intro track "Tragedy" is a powerful noise opener that gave me high hopes for the rest of the EP. However, the middle section of "Born to Kill" leans toward French-inspired bass, rap and trashrave (Orties comes to mind). While solid in execution, it left me wanting something slower and grittier. "Emptiness" brings a rush of breakbeat energy, and "Dawn" beautifully closes the release with atmospheric drone guitar shredding. I could easily imagine this being split into two separate releases for better cohesion. A solid debut nonetheless.
Cop the EP here, and check out all the tracks down below.