EP Review: Torturous Ascension

Do you like riffs and beats that feel like they’re trying to cave your chest in, but still hit you with melody when you least expect it and the whole time you can’t stop moving your head while also maybe being a little scared?

Yeah? Then Plague of the Fallen and their latest body of work was made just for you.

Plague of the Fallen dropped their latest EP Torturous Ascension at the end of 2025 and have since played an EP release show only a few weeks ago – and honestly, it’s not enough. I mean that as a compliment because with their latest line up (Dan Ferguson & Nag Reid from Utilize The Remains) on Guitar/BV and Bass as well as Dhanesh Parmar on guitar…”what an insanely cracked line up” and a new body of work you just never wanna stop tuning into.

Five tracks are on this EP with the whole thing only having a running time of just over 15 minutes… but within that time it gives so much and while at the same time hitting you like a ton of bricks!

From the second this EP kicks in, it’s not easing you into anything. It’s straight into the depths. The riffs are loud, tight, and unapologetic – no overthinking, no hesitation. They hit consistently and drag you deeper into the world of Plague of the Fallen

Just heavy, driving guitars, bass and drums that feel like they’re coming for you personally.

And the vocals? Gnarly, powerful and full of verbal RKOS. Vincent Minchington or Vinnie as he is known to most in the New Zealand Metal scene shows in Torturous Ascension not only the incredible power his vocals carry but also show an outstanding range of styles, as well as impeccable control and speed. Plague of the Fallen is Vincent’s brainchild and it is rad that we get to experience it and to this extreme regarding Torturous Ascension.

Keep in mind this is not their first EP but their second as well as releasing an album in 2023. What I love most about the vocals on this EP as well as having the honour to witness this latest body of work live is that on releases and live from Vincent and the rest of the band what you hear online is what you hear live and that within the local metal scene of New Zealand is someone who is at the top of their craft and only continues to get better and better. There’s intent in all of it. You can feel every word being pushed out like it matters and if you are into this style of music you can also understand every lyric and learn it to scream and yell back which in a live setting always makes a better show in my opinion.

What I like about Torturous Ascension is that it doesn’t just rely on being heavy. Yeah, it’s crushing. Yeah, it’s aggressive. But there’s heaps of melody tucked in there too, especially on track three Torturous Ascension and on track five Laceration Oath.

The drums don’t just sit in the background either. They drive the whole thing forward. Tight. Locked in. No sloppy edges. It is almost like this band in various forms has been around for a very long time. I am sure it also adds to the impact and tightness of the drums when you find out not only is one hitting them is Stuart Minchington who is an incredible musician (best known for his work in Blindfolded And Led To The Woods on Guitar and backing vocals as well as bit of everything in more in his solo project Pill Murray)

There are tempo shifts that hit just right. Beats that don’t feel forced and just flow. Riffs and lyrics that stick in your head. It would make for good reading at Sunday dinner if you don’t want to be invited to it anymore and just relax. It’s the kind of EP you finish and immediately run back because five tracks just isn’t enough time to process it all and then me personally sends me on a Plague of the Fallen rabbit hole and it is a hole worth diving into head first.

Production-wise, it’s clean, polished and violent. You can hear everything – the bite in the guitars, the punch in the drums, the weight in the vocals. It feels like oblivion is suspended above the void, and somehow all you want to do is stay right there…(Listen to the second track to get the reference)

I love EPs because sometimes you get a look into what a band can really do and even though this is not their first offering I believe it is one of their best and this has only continued to hit home the talent, skill and power of Plague of the Fallen and the fact that Vinnie and the lads in Plague are legends within Christchurch metal scene and I believe also the country.

Torturous Ascension isn’t a glimpse. It’s a statement. It’s The Plague of the Fallen saying, “We’re here, been here since ages ago and we’re not going where soon unless that is just more relentless, violent and hard hitting.”

If this EP is anything to go off for the future, that future is their next full-length is going to be ridiculously dope and violent.

And I’m so ready for it and it couldn’t come soon enough.