...and Oceans
The Dynamic Gallery Of Thought
(c)(p)1998 Season Of Mist
Review by Neil St.Laurent
Thanks to the band for the Cassette
It is possible that the atmospheric melody that starts out most black
metal albums these days can indicate just as much about the band by
being absent as it can by being present. With that ...and Oceans,
while not exactly the most variant black metal outfit, are definitely
somewhat different from the rest.
The immediate distinction that this Finnish band has from so many of
the others is the capacity in which the keyboard is used. Varying
from the strict use of the synth for atmosphere, ...and Oceans
attempts to add some lead melody to the music with the keyboards,
which tends to have their music approach somewhat the Bishop Of Hexen
style. It is then somewhat unfortunate that the guitar riffing
doesn't always blend well with the flowing synth, of course it can
just as easily be said that the synth compensates well for weaker
guitar riffs, and at times the guitars just turn themselves down so
that only the synth is at a point of attention.
Beyond the keyboards, "The Dynamic Gallery Of Thought" is truly just a
fairly average black metal release. Although nothing is overly high
in pitch, including vocals, and there isn't always that unrelenting
nonsense we've come to expect, it is just in the end, typical black
metal. Of course that may not be entirely fair, for to many people it
is not that sound alone that drives them away, but the endless
continuation of it, and ...and Oceans has enough keyboard driven
components to break up the standard fare, which in some ways actually
makes that standard fare much more listenable.
A special note has to be made about the vocals, their presence seems
almost entirely unnecessary. The music is fine without them, but
even more interestingly the vocals don't really alter the overall
quality of the music whatsoever, good or bad. The vocals are 'just there'.
...and Oceans has plenty to offer as a band, and despite most of
their music being fairly standard black metal, the elegant use of
keyboards to provide melodic atmosphere (as noted before, much akin
to Bishop Of Hexen's dark ballroom style) manage to enrich all the
music so that the entire album is listenable. Breaking apart the
album for the purpose of review does bring to surface many negatives,
but much of those have been intentionally omitted as this album draws
its quality from an overall sound, not individual components. ...and
Oceans has something to offer any extreme music listener.
Contact:
Email: jani.martikkala@icl.fi
Web: http://www.grave.com/~mega/AO/
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