Sleeping Ghosts

 

Perfect Pictures and all the bands we play with this fall

Here's »Perfect Pictures«, another song from our new album »Songs for the Haunted«, out on September 12th. This one is an exploration of family history and therefore features Julian's brother Michael (Die Negation, The Heartbreak Motel Motel) on guest vocals. Our friend Hendrik wrote about it: »What enables the two and their comrades to create such a powerful sound also lies in their biographies – and makes the song an ambivalent empowerment, steeped in anger, frustration, melancholy and forgiveness.«

The video was once again directed by Julian with some camera help from General Motor. It stars Janiko Stolar aka All the Ghosts.

Today we're also unveiling all the bands we've invited to play with on our hauntology trip this fall. We can't wait to catch up with all these friends, old and new.

18.09. Münster, Sputnik Café w/ True Gloom, Old Virus
19.09. Berlin, Neue Zukunft w/ True Gloom, Sete
20.09. Praha, Riot Over River Festival w/ Ancst, Verrat
02.10. Köln, Helios 37 w/ Giver, True Gloom
03.10. Leipzig, UT Connewitz w/ True Gloom, R.O.S.A.
04.10. Hamburg, Hafenklang w/ True Gloom, R.O.S.A.
06.11. Gent, Asgaard w/ Fazed, Loud Love
07.11. Hannover, Lux w/ True Gloom, R.O.S.A.
15.01. München, Feierwerk w/ Melt Downer, Prison of Hope
16.01. Wien, Arena w/ Melt Downer, Dice Throw
17.01. Karlsruhe, P8 w/ Slon, Prison of Hope

True Gloom is Hamburg's newest rocking hardcore piggery. Our old friends Jens (Just Went Black) and Rocco (Glasses) are involved and the band is about to drop their first album just in time for our shows together.

Old Virus from Oelde includes Marc and Vadim from The Facts. These are the guys who took us on our first tour ever and we are forever in debt.

Sete is ex-The Tidal Sleep and ex-Jennifer Rostock. We'll all be the first to find out how that sounds as this is going to be Sete's first show ever.

Giver is a band we fell in love with on our first reunion run in 2022. It's a pity they can only join us for the Cologne show, but we'll make that one count as it is a hometown show for them.

R.O.S.A. is a real supergroup to us: Patsy O'Hara, Empty Vision and Tackleberry are all bands we played with numerous times back in the day. We love their dark and effect-ridden take on hardcore and can't wait to share the stage with them.

Loud Love from Diest in Belgium are bringing in a more melodic approach which we think fits just perfectly. We are looking forward to returning to the beautiful city of Gent.

Melt Downer are Vienna's finest noise rock outfit and somewhat of the follow-up band of Killed by 9V Batteries. Wolfi Möstl is the realest dog around. Can't wait for this to happen.

Prison of Hope has Hagen from @drastic_actions on drums, the label that put out our very first release. This is finest 90ies mosh and the band is named after a Chokehold album, so of course we're sold.

Dice Throw is a band we came across while looking into the current vivid Vienna hardcore scene. They make a perfect match, not just because they supported Unbroken in Prague once.

Slon have released the probably wildest German hardcore record of this year. Check out "Doppelganger", if you haven't heard it yet. This band includes Simon from the great post-punk group Wedding Songs.

Get your tickets over at Grand Hotel van Cleef:
https://www.ghvc-shop.de/ritual-shows-for-the-haunted_6491/

Thanks to Poj Poj for making this happen and thanks to Matthias Rausch for the wonderful poster.

United by Summer Fest

We're playing this awesome and free show very soon ...

Violent Minds

Today we are releasing two more new songs off our new album. Watch the music videos for »Violent Minds« and »In the Rain«, once again directed by our Julian Laur de Manos. The songs are now streaming everywhere.





Even more so: We are going back on the road and we are really excited about it. Here's the lovely tour poster designed by the one and only Matthias Rausch – thank you so much for this!

Soon we'll announce some great great bands featuring old acquaintances who will join us on this ride. We know these shows will be special to us, so we want to try to make these shows special to you as well.

18.09. Münster, Sputnik Café
19.09. Berlin, Neue Zukunft
20.09. Praha, Riot Over River Festival
02.10. Köln, Helios 37
03.10. Leipzig, UT Connewitz
04.10. Hamburg, Hafenklang
06.11. Gent, Asgaard
07.11. Hannover, Lux
15.01. München, Feierwerk
16.01. Wien, Arena
17.01. Karlsruhe, P8

Tickets are available through Grand Hotel van Cleef's online shop.

Thanks to Friedhelm and Pojpoj for putting these shows together and thanks to FUZE Magazine, VISIONS Magazin and OxFanzine for presenting the tour.

Silver Lining

    (Foto:
    Moritz Hagedorn)

We used to be a band between 2005 and 2012, yet here we are with a new record.

We love each other, we love hardcore.

»Silver Lining«/»Trust« are now streaming on all these nowadays platforms.

https://orcd.co/ritualhc

Ruhrpott Revival Rumble

We had such a great time in Bochum last night playing a half-secret show.

Even though we have played two final shows already, we just cannot leave it at that. We're happy to announce we are going to play at Ruhrpott Revival in May 2025 alongside our friends in Giver and Wrong Man, the follow-up band to beloved Rise and Fall.

Better get yourself a ticket now:
https://ruhrpottrevival.bigcartel.com

Thank you

(Picture by Gideon Rothmann)

We would like to sincerely thank everyone who was part of this both emotional and powerful ride that was called »Time Flies«. The whole thing turned out to be even more beautiful than in our wildest dreams and it underlined everything we've always loved about playing in this band.

For those who couldn't be there, this is what we played:

Distant Glance (Intro)
Clouds
Nation of Flies
Somewhere in the Rain
The Coldest Shoulder
Absolute Devotion
The Ghost Is You
The Dead in Disguise
Stone and Glass
If There‘s a Hell, We‘re All Going Down
Wolves
The City Lies in Quiet Sleep
Reaping Loneliness
Guilt Will Get You Anyway

And as Hamburg was our final show ever, we added the first song we ever wrote as Ritual and the first song Julian, Deni and Philipp ever performed together at a show:

Actress, Little Actress
Absentee Debate

We're sending all our love to our comrades in PATSY O'HARA and EMPTY VISION, to Niclas of Zündstoff Booking and to our great travel party. This was truly a collective experience and it couldn't have been the same without you.

Time flies —
Ritual is forever

Warming up at AKZ Recklinghausen

As some of you had already suggested – of course, we cannot reunite and not play AKZ Recklinghausen. Therefore, we have put together a sweet warm-up show for our little tour with Patsy O'Hara and Empty Vision. It's happening on September, 23rd.

We have invited some good old friends:

Die Negation – Michi, Alan and Fre have been close affiliates from the very start. Sure thing, we had to have them on this show. Our very own Julian is also part of this band.

D.E.E.P. – New band including Ruhrpott hardcore legends. Our friend Ben Fink of Zero Mentality vomits into the mic here. Welcome on board, powerhouse!

Prison of Hope – A new 90ies mosh band from Stuttgart. Hagen from Drastic Actions is doing the vocals. Drastic Actions put out our very first release, One Foot in the Grave, back in 2005. The one and only Jogges from Empowerment is drumming in this group.

Show starts at 19.00. Be there early – no presale! It's 5€ only.

Yes, we will be back for three shows

Yes, we will be back for three shows. Exactly ten years after our break-up not only the four of us are getting back together, we are also teaming up with our dear friends in Empty Vision and PATSY O´ HARA to offer you a time traveling experience.
The first rehearsals were such a joy already, now we can't wait to bring our songs back on stage with all the needed brutality and loudness.

We used to be quite sceptical of reunions, now we get the idea. If you've ever been in the grips of the intensity that is hardcore punk music, you will never forget that. And it seems only natural to us wanting to relive this experience.

30.09. Berlin—Cassiopeia
01.10. Münster—Sputnikhalle
02.10. Hamburg—Hafenklang

Tickets are up for presale now via https://bit.ly/3sQ8vSH 

Thanks to Niclas Almér-Henßen who booked tours for us back in the days and who also booked these shows now via Zuendstoff Booking.

Hope to see you all soon,
Deni—Pascal—Julian—Philipp

PS: And in case you were wondering, of course we are bringing Ebbing to these shows.

Time Flies