Let’s face it, we all like to vomit a bit of disgust now and again and that is exactly what veteran German doom / death band Odium are doing here on their 5th full-length album. Advocating “No light, no destination, no compromise” since 2001 I have miserably dipped into their musical torment at various times in the past although not for a while. Indeed, it was way back in 2013 I saw them live with Evoken, Indesinence and Evadne, a night which had no short of amount of crying into beer involved It is probably no surprise that we get 6 very lengthy songs here spanning over an hour in playing time. As far as the quartet are concerned Phillipp Kruppa is the sole survivor of formative shipwrecks and there are 2 relatively new members to the fold on guitar and drums since last album ‘The Dismal Circle’ back in 2017. It’s worth noting that drummer Ole is also responsible for the excellent Lovecraftian artwork.
There are plenty of lush guitar lines found on songs such as opener ‘Default Empty’ bringing an air of light to proceedings compared to the hoary vocal barks. However, there is grit to be found too with some shrill My Dying Bride sounding “Tortured Swan Squeals” as well. The combination of the playing in this respect brings some Gothic textures to the fore and passages that meander in an almost post respect. The gravity does spread with some momentous drumming as we start into ‘Of Stygian Descent’ but there is plenty of compromise between heaviness and dreamy motifs which shape-shift into each other giving listeners the best of both worlds.
This is an album for the riff seekers to bow and tremble along to, coasting along to the slow parts and being dashed at sudden tumultuous surges of speeds. Due to these you could not, although the dividing line is not that great a chasm, call Ophis a funeral doom band. The injections into deathly territories would never allow this and as ‘Conflagration Eternal’ chugs into action there is a totally unexpected burst of rhythm and melody that is actually reminiscent of Napalm Death’s classic Breed To Breathe; I kid you not. Naturally it settles down fairly quickly leaving you feeling like a mouse having been toyed with by a cat and one wonders if was cheekily done on purpose. Its certainly effective as are the shuddering guitar lines in its wake, which certainly give the listener an electric jolt to the senses before the mournful, reverential tones bow you down once more. Plenty of atmosphere going on here and it is probably the most well-rounded track although at 11 ½ minutes long don’t go looking for radio airplay.
Melody becomes intrinsic on the second half, the guitar parts really wrapping themselves around you and at times making you feel like you have been embraced in a cocoon but not one without thorns creating a bloody mass as song titles like ‘The Perennial Wound’ suggest. Entrancement and bliss are equally there alongside a bereft feel of torture and pain as the weathered vocal angst, including the odd death belch and the slow pounding drum-work make clearly apparent. Everything leads to the final descent into the horrifying sounding torture chamber that is The Stagnant Room. The piercing guitars resurface from the first number and here the vocals are elongated to ring in the ears and force their way into your consciousness like a nightmarish scenario but are counterpoised by some solemn clean parts too. This is far from a morgue despite the scent and one gets the feeling of the restless dead haunting things as a sudden surge takes us to deliverance. Solid stuff
(8/10 Pete Woods)
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