Night Ritualz is a San Antonio-based darkwave/synth-punk project by musician Vincent Guerrero IV, known for blending atmospheric, moody soundscapes with post-punk, Latin influences, and sharp, vulnerable lyrics. He releases his latest album `Time Is A Thief` this month which explores identity, resilience, displacement, and vulnerability.
Title track `Time Is A Thief` leads us in with a fairly long instrumental intro and it`s a dreamy listen with the later part becoming a spoken word reflection. There`s a more faster paced throbbing feel to the bass led `Living In this Bed` with vocals that are much more potent.
`Ya No Está` may translate to `is no longer here` and is a pensive ballad like slow burn sung in Spanish. I read that `Brown Skin` is an unapologetic expression of identity, struggle, and survival. The song blends personal storytelling with social commentary, confronting feelings of displacement, family separation, and the weight of heritage. It had a quite trancelike texture.
`Un Tiro` translates as `One Shot` and has a rhythmic beat with guitar chords sprinkled throughout while `Watching TV` is more upbeat with tender vocals floated atop.
`Cluster` is ninety four seconds of cinematic sound which conveys a sense of danger or alarm. There`s a kind of assertive hostility about `Whoreish` with its underlying pounding under beat.
`Cupid Is A Cuck` could well be a contemptuous slant on the angelic cherub god of desire, erotic love, and affection and the person he`s chosen for the narrator. The final cut is `My Baby, My Love` a dreamlike love song which becomes completely spellbinding.
`Time Is A Thief` is around thirty minutes of captivating and gentle Darkwave, synth-punk, and post-punk which musically portrays moody, haunting soundscapes.
Rating 7/10
