“Seventh Seal” by Russian Circles

For well over two decades now, Chicago’s Russian Circles have been serving up in-your-face instrumental post-rock that definitely hews to the “rock” side of that equation, with pummeling rhythms and face-melting riffs that draw equally from the realms of hardcore and metal. As such, the slab-like imagery on the cover of their latest album, Nine, is quite apropos; there’s nothing subtle about the trio’s music, which is precisely why it’s so bracing.

Case in point, “Seventh Seal.” As befitting such a title, Nine’s final track is a score for the end times. Drummer Dave Turncrantz sounds like he’s trying to summon the Four Horsemen themselves with his galloping beats while Mike Sullivan unleashes his riffs — face-melting to the extreme — with wild and reckless abandon. And it gets even better in the song’s second half, where the band slows to a sludgy breakdown that’ll have the entire pit pounding on the floor with bloody fists.

Nine is currently available via Sargent House.