Misogyny. Politics. Religion. Sexism. Vanity. Misanthropy. It’s all in My Ruin’s sixth full length album, Ghosts and Good Stories. And true to form, vocalist Tairrie B. (Murphy) is at the helm, leading the revolution with her brutal assault.

To understand My Ruin, you have to understand frontwoman Tairrie B.’s history. You’d be hard pressed to find a current female metal vocalist that doesn’t list Tairrie B. as an influence. And when I say female vocalists, I’m not talking about that Epica and Nightwish operatic crap either. I’m talking about metaphorical balls to-the-wall, blood curdling vocals that sound as though they originated in the pits of hell.

I was introduced to My Ruin through their second full length album, A Prayer Under Pressure Of Violent Anguish, and was simply floored by Tairrie B’s raw aggressiveness. Her career spans over two decades; from her days starting out as a solo rapper (yeah, that’s right), to forming Manhole/Tura Satana in 1993 and finally My Ruin in 1999. She’s a music industry veteran that has done it all, and has blazed paths for so many female vocalists since, it feels unfair to draw any comparisons. So I won’t even bother.

The current incarnation of My Ruin is that of a two piece- Tairrie B. on vocals and her (now) husband Mick Murphy fullfilling guitar, bass and drum duties. The result of this refined lineup is a fairly concise album to evidence a clear and focused vision. In true Tairrie B. form, Ghosts and Good Stories provides copious amounts of spoken word upheld by ferocious, throaty verbal assaults. Forget the indulgent, operatic vocals and clean singing from most female metal vocalists these days, because you’ll get none of that here.

“Diggin’ for Ghosts” starts the album out with down tempo, sludgy riffs and spoken word. It feels a bit like an intro to me, simply because the song never really goes anywhere until around the 3:31 mark. “Long Dark Night” comes blazing out of Hell’s Gates in a successful act of redemption, and serves as one of the album’s strongest tracks. Immediately following is another of the album’s highlights, “Excommunicated”. Tairrie B. really shines while screeching the lyrics “In a world that makes me sick, I will be your heretic.” just before the song slows back down into more fuzzy, distorted Southern-style guitar riffs.

“Eyes Black” addresses the issue of women being forced to cover their faces in the name of religion, and is done so with unrelenting gutturals and lyrical attacks. Tairrie B.’s vocal style (not sound) closely resembles Otep Shamaya in the way she goes back and forth between screams and spoken word. “Money Shot” is quite an interesting song. Simply put, it lambastes women who are willing to take their clothes off for fame. The lyrics verge on being laughable and overly simple (come on, spare us the dumbed down Nickelback lyrics). But I suppose if the song is aimed at vapid, vacuous celebrities, the fewer big words used, the better.

“Abusing the Muse” is another of my favorite tracks from the album. It features a hook that will resonate with you for hours after the song is over. It’s drenched with more heavy, distorted guitars and ruthless, throaty vocals as Tairrie unflinchingly confronts modern religion. “Turned Out” is a cover of the Rollins Band classic as only My Ruin can do it. That being said, it feels totally out of place on the album which makes it a definite skip for me. Immediately following is the album’s closing track, “Deathknell”, which is primarily driven by spoken word. It’s doom-laden, haunting, and eerily captivating.

With Ghosts and Good Stories boasting thirteen tracks, I definitely found a few throwaways. But it also has more than its share of standout tracks, which made it quite an enjoyable listen for me. If you’re looking for an album that oozes anger, misanthropy and aggression without apologies, you’ve certainly found it!

3.5/5