Cleveland, Ohio post-hardcore act Ritual Bronze is a band born in the desolate isolation of South Amherst, featuring Ryan Hardwick (Last Gasp) alongside Bob Adams, Justin Scardami, Mike Wyant, and Seth Hansen. Its self-titled debut, which sees release via Steadfast Records / Sweet Cheetah Records in June, arrives as one of the most emotionally honest records to come out of the region in recent memory.

Rooted in the quiet/loud dynamic of early-millennium emo and post-hardcore, the record channels the aching melodicism of On the Might of Princes, The Casket Lottery, and The Appleseed Cast without sounding like a nostalgic exercise.

The record feels lived-in because it is. The debut wrestles with addiction, heartbreak, the strange process of aging out of punk rock, and the creeping dread of watching the world reshape around you — handled with a vulnerability that makes hard songs feel like a hand on the shoulder.

One such track is ’40 Year Corpse.’

“’40 Year Corpse’ is an addiction song,” says vocalist Hardwick. “I’m not proud of it but I’ve been grinding my body into dust on and off for over twenty years with drugs and booze. I’m thrilled to share that I’ve got a handle on that stuff now, but the song was written about the mental war active addiction does to thinking with clarity. I’m such a happier person these days, glad those days are behind me.”

Look for the band to tour regionally this Summer, and for the preorder to drop in coming weeks.

Photo courtesy of Ritual Bronze.