Omnium Gatherum consists of Harri Pikka on guitar, Janne Markkanen On Bass, Antti Filppu as Vocals, Jukka Perala on Keyboards, Jarmo Pikka on Drums, and Markus Vanhala on guitars.
As with most Death Metal bands you will not instantly understand what the vocalist is saying. Antti isn't that hard to understand but let's be honest, if the music sucks no one cares what the vocalist is saying. Good for us, the music is top notch and is therefore an invitation to read the lyrics and follow along. That is not that easy a task though, because Antii writes some pretty heady stuff here. Thinking man's death metal. The music is awesome, Not a death metal child of say Entombed, but rather a close cousin to the melodic strains heard in Opeth, Extol, Etc.
You'll find some touches of Neo-Classical guitar work thrown around in bits on some songs. There are no real blast beated barn burners here....but speed has it's place now doesn't it. They keep in it's place too. You'll even find Doom metal in track #9
"It Shines". Lots of styles make their way onto this release. "A touch of Maiden please" says the reviewer. "Why certainly" replies the album.
Omnium Gatherum will no doubt garner top recognition from the release of this album in the Death metal scene.
Antti never allows himself to perform clean vocals anywhere on the album. This will keep the music in it's Death Metal category. Yet there is so much more to the tunes than the Death metal of old would allow. There is melody all over it, and space, room to breathe. The keyboards are not overdone but play a crucial role in the atmosphere they have achieved. The guitar work is very accessible and clean distortion is used, much like the album "Human" by Death. The song structures are perfect in their progressions. Never do I feel like they have taken a few riffs and stitched them together in a random way. The songs seem planned, thought out, and you can tell they have worked very hard to achieve this excellent album.
While not their first recorded effort, this is their first full length album for their English label
Rage Of Achilles. The label has an absolute winner here and I dare say even critics of the Death metal growl will find this album quite enjoyable. I want to refer you to their website for a more brain draining take on lyrical content and the making of this album. You'll find a great page residing at:
www.omniumgatherum.cjb.net The official site by the way.
A quick note on the production and I'll leave you to scrape up your extra change and sell an effects pedal or cherished comic book so you can go buy this record. I went and sold some metal CD's I didn't like to get the dough to buy this one! (yes,
Time Requiem was one of them)
The production is stellar as provided by the services of Sonic Pump studios. Every instrument is broadly fixed in the sound spectrum as to give your ears room to hear every note of the instruments. You have to respect the guys in the band as well for picking and learning to use their gear. An oft overlooked facet to a musician's trade is his gear. Not only do you have to learn your instrument, you have to learn how to make it sound good and also sound like what you hear in your head. This is the very magic of a good musician. A process that continually evolves with the voracious appetite of a musician in constant search for tones, much like an Arthurian quest for the Grail.
Omnium Gatherum offer their music as a toast with the Grail they have found thus far, I reply with a heartfelt "Here, Here".
Written by
David Sunday, July 20, 2003
Show all reviews by DavidRatingsDavid: 8.5/10Members: No members have rated this album yet.
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