Rivers of Nihil Part Ways with Founding Vocalist Jake Dieffenbach
Big news from progressive/technical death metal outfit Rivers of Nihil: the band announced earlier today via Twitter that they are parting ways with founding vocalist Jake Dieffenbach. Dieffenbach performed on every Rivers of Nihil release. Bassist Adam Biggs will assume lead vocal duties in addition to serving as the band’s bassist and one of its chief songwriters.
“We would like to inform our fans and colleagues alike that we’ve parted ways with Jake Dieffenbach. Jake was a founding member of Rivers of Nihil, and our friend and brother beyond the scope of the band. While this decision wasn’t easy, it was necessary. We ask our friend and fans to allow Jake the space to handle his affairs with dignity and privacy.
“The creative core of Rivers of Nihil is still intact. Brody and Biggs will continue to be the main architects of the music and lyrics, as they have been from the start. Jared has been with us for 5 years and 2 albums already, and we’ve known Andy for so long it feels like he’s been in the band forever. To that end, rather than bringing in anyone new, Biggs will be taking over lead vocals on the upcoming EU/UK “Faces of Death” tour, the recently-announced Northeast US dates with Killswitch Engage, and beyond—as he did on the second half of our recent North American tour with The Contortionist—in addition to continuing his duties on bass.
“Beyond touring, we have some exciting new releases planned for the near future as well. Stay tuned for those announcements soon.”
Rivers of Nihil released The Work in 2021, following their critically-lauded 2018 release, Where Owls Know My Name. MetalSucks voted it the ninth best album of the 2010s, saying, “Every so often, a band makes a record that feels like not just the defining statement of their career-to-date, but of the very subgenre they inhabit. Rivers of Nihil’s Where Owls Know My Name is one such album. It is the evolutionary endpoint of everything death metal has done to date, a decade of Summer Slaughter tours summed up in one unfuckwithable release that is mercilessly heavy, intimidatingly technical, and occasionally djenty. It also includes sexy saxophone which would not be out of place in a Glenn Frey song.”
