Mantic Ritual

Formed in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, under the name Meltdown, Mantic Ritual entered the thrash revival of the new millennium around 2006. The group promptly relocated to Los Angeles in pursuit of wider recognition, traveling cross-country to perform live and distribute early recordings. The strategy succeeded, leading Nuclear Blast to sign the quartet—vocalist and guitarist Dan Wetmore, guitarist Jeff Potts, bassist Ben Mottsman, and drummer Adam Haritan—by the close of 2007. All four members then settled in California permanently. The label advised a name change and arranged for the band to track its debut in Germany under producer Andy Classen, formerly of Holy Moses. Classen’s prior work with acts such as Krisiun, Belphegor, and Dew-Scented aligned closely with Mantic Ritual’s approach, which updated the classic Bay Area thrash style in the vein of Exodus and Vio-Lence. The resulting album, Executioner, appeared in early 2009.