Review: ORACLE “Beyond Omega”

ORACLE “Beyond Omega”

Some time ago I began get e-mails from Cátia Cunha of promotion agency AGAINST PR. And here I’d like to thank her very, very much for giving me opportunity to get know new bands, listen to new music. I really appreciate what you do my Metal sister!!! Hopefully there’ll be more people like that in future. Anyways, she sends me really tons of stuffs and one of them is debut album of American ORACLE.

Well, to be correct there’re at least two bands with this name in the States. This one which I’m talking about at the moment comes from the third most populous city in state of Alabama – Mobile where live more than 190.000 people. As on conditions of North America it has long history coz was found in the beginning of 18^th century (1702). In Mobile’s economy port always played and still play key role. Of course city has a lot to offer on several fields, but here’s no place to write about this.

In the only Alabama’s sea port, as in practically every city on the world, we can find Metalheads. Some of them decide to be active on the scene and are founding bands. That’s what happened last year when brothers (I suppose) Ozinga – Ray (bass) and Troy (guitars) + BG (drums) and Jason (vocals) decided to unite forces to create music they like. So, it’s as clear as day for everyone who read these words that ‘Beyond Omega’ is a very first release in their short career. And this is full-length already. Album guys released indepently after several months of band’s existence. It means that they treat seriously what they do and didn’t wait hell knows for what with starting work on their own songs.

We have ten of then, by the way. And let’s be honest that especially as on debut album they present really high level. I don’t want to say that they’re something edge-cutting and ‘Beyond Omega’ is immortal work. But I clearly hear that guys have ideas, potential and if they’ll still work hard ORACLE can become at least quite well-known band worldwide. But they need also some luck for that coz as I noticed during all these years on the scene, good quality of music sometimes is not enough. Well, some well-known bands play worse music than our American friends do, but… Anyways, this what we have to do here with is this more melodic kind of Death Metal. But don’t worry!!! This is in its way also brutal music.

Riffs are very often melodic, as I said. But Troy plays more, let’s say, characteristic ones for Death Metal. They’re even a little broken from time to time. He uses some technical tricks like penny whistles and stuff like that when it’s needed for song’s structure. BG drums massively and of course we have here some passages and so on. They’re maybe uncomplicated in general, but it’s not Fusion Jazz for fuck sake!!! What I like is that cymbals are in use almost whole the time. Jason’s growling is rather classic Death Metal one this isn’t in vein of Chris Burns for example, but even when he uses it more melodically it’s still brutal enough and you can’t have any doubts what kind of music you have to do here with.

To sum up I’ll say only that this stuff should be listened at least three times by everyone who thinks that is fan of Death Metal!I can hardly find in this music elements of Thrash Metal (some well-hearable ones), but it’s not so important if I agree with description of this music which’s on EM in 100%,doesn’t it?!? What is important here is the fact that ‘Beyond Omega’ is good stuff. In my opinion, what I already wrote, by the way, a lot of more experienced bands could be jealous of this album. There’re things to improve of course, but generally…