REVIEW: Rising Insane - DEATHRACE

There is something very immersive about DEATHRACE. The intro sets us up for a show with the sound of footsteps and coughing before the music properly begins, creating the unmistakable feeling of a band about to walk on stage. It feels like the lights are off and we are preparing for the first note to hit. And that turns out to be the perfect summary of the album. Because DEATHRACE, due for release on August 21st via Long Branch Records, doesn't simply sound like a collection of songs. It sounds like a live show condensed into an album. The German metalcore quintet RISING INSANE hits their most radical chapter yet as a culmination of years spent building towards exactly this point. They are unafraid and holding no punches with tracks packed with raw power, primal riffs and instinctive aggression.

The title track DEATHRACE immediately puts everything into motion. Fast, aggressive and packed with energy, it sets the tone with drums firmly at the forefront, marking the pace while everything moves at breakneck speed. Sharp transitions and a constantly shifting structure give the song a sense of forward momentum that perfectly embodies its title. It is essentially the musical equivalent of flooring the accelerator. That feeling continues with COUNTDOWN, with an anthemic chorus made to feed and empower a crowd. Where DEATHRACE throws the listener into motion, Countdown gives that momentum something to rally behind. It is the kind of chorus that feels written to be shouted back by hundreds of people at a festival.

Then comes OUTRAGE, co-produced by Steven Jones (BLEED FROM WITHIN), opening with maximum impact before revealing one of its greatest strengths: its contrast. Its rhythm carries a distinct punk energy, while the chorus is remarkably catchy and melodic. It hits hard without becoming monotonous, deliberately leaving enough breathing room for the chorus to feel enormous when it arrives. RISING INSANE has described the song as being about the feeling of being trapped inside your own head, unable to escape old thoughts and experiences. It becomes an outlet for that frustration, a desire to tear oneself free even while knowing that it isn't quite that simple. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ebs2v0ToKCA

TRAUMATIZED takes a different route. Its opening carries an almost nu-metal feel before gradually picking up speed and introducing clear punk influences on the way to the chorus. It is one of the album's most genre-fluid moments, combining different influences into something that still feels cohesive and polished. It also carries an emotional weight that makes it stands out and feels like a sucker punch. The fluctuations in rhythm and vocal delivery make the sense of vulnerability and strain tangible. There is aggression here, but also something much more fragile and human underneath it.

DARK, featuring ACCVSED, pushes that aggression further. The atmosphere becomes heavier and more ominous, with vocal fry and increasingly brutal delivery creating the feeling of an ongoing battle. It is less about catharsis and more about confrontation, dragging the listener deeper into the album's darker territory. The collaboration with ACCVSED also adds another texture to the record without disrupting its overall flow. NARCISSIST initially slows things down, opening with languid, almost doom-like clear vocals. Gradually, the intensity creeps in, with high-impact screams cutting through the calmer passages. That slower burn makes its eventual impact all the greater.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXlixMEd0cA

DIRT refuses to let the momentum disappear. Gritty and frustrated, it carries a tangible sense of determination while leaning heavily into RISING INSANE's melodic strengths. Even this deep into the record, there is absolutely no sense of filler. A deceptively sharp opening gives way to one of the album's heaviest moments, accompanied by outstanding vocal work and an impressive range of delivery. The album still finds new ways to surprise. Then comes GREY, one of the album's longest and most immersive compositions. It builds a slow-burning wall of sound, incorporating heavy post-hardcore rhythms alongside haunting contributions from David Schneider (THE BUTCHER SISTERS). The song is powerful and relentless, but it somehow also gives itself room to breathe. And then comes that guitar solo. It is the kind of moment that can genuinely leave you speechless, cutting through the heaviness before driving the track towards a spectacular conclusion. 

ERROR, featuring Steven Jones (BLEED FROM WITHIN), turns into something darker. Brooding and heavy as an anvil, the collaboration introduces a towering weight that gradually crawls beneath the skin before breaking open into catharsis. The track's subject matter, doubt, insecurity, feeling broken, and becoming trapped inside your own thoughts are fully laced inside its rhythm, the psychological tension running throughout. Finally, GOOD ENOUGH featuring CASKETS brings the album back to one of its most emotionally exposed points. The song dives headfirst into psychological struggle, personal doubt and the exhausting, cyclical pursuit of self acceptance. It feels hectic in a way that is running on fumes and strained, exhausted from trying to keep moving. The extensive use of vocal fry reinforces that sensation. It is also fitting that it is the song that closes the record, already being a major turning point for RISING INSANE even before the album drop by its streaming success.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVRLV1jRP_c

It feels as if the entire album has been constructed for a crowd. You can almost see the audience jumping during DEATHRACE, shouting back during COUNTDOWN, going completely feral during OUTRAGE and holding its breath during GREY. The listener is an integral part of the record. That makes DEATHRACE infectiously catchy and empowering. RISING INSANE understands that heaviness doesn't have to mean sacrificing immediacy. Their riffs are primal, their rhythms physical, their choruses memorable and their transitions constantly keep the listener engaged. The record grabs you and keeps pulling. That live show mentality is supported by the band being already on the road around the album cycle, with European dates stretching through the end of 2026.

But ultimately, DEATHRACE is an album about movement. It accelerates, crashes, slows down, rebuilds and accelerates again. Its aggression is matched by melody, its darkness by moments of cathartic release, and its personal themes by the sense that they are meant to be experienced collectively. The album doesn't simply ask you to listen. It asks you to get in the car, buckle up and hold on.

Score: 8/10

DEATHRACE will be released on 21st August 2026 via Long Branch Records.

Words: Lysandre Pons

Photos: Katharina Sterl