Ox.Eagle.Lion.Man's plan to release opuses instead of albums initially struck me as a shame - nothing beats a full length LP. But after last year's uniquely powerful first opus 'The Lay Of The Land; The Turn Of The Tide' it became obvious that format didn't matter. Now with 'Opus 2: Obscured By A Setting Sun' it all begins to make perfect sense. Opener 'If This Is A Man' rings in with the exact same screeching feedback that Opus 1 ended with; linking the 2 pieces of work together. From here on the music is original in a way that can only be O.E.L.M. but Frederick Blood-Royale and co. have seriously stepped it up a notch. The aforementioned opener and highlight 'Thy Will Be Done' are more venomous than anything they've done before with Blood-Royale spitting out devastating lyrics such as "Will the blind lead the blind, or are your eyes just as closed as your heart, as your mind?" No-one else can do it like they do, no-one else dares.Elsewhere, 'The Road To Damascus' sees the band chanting almost religiously with what sounds like "Fallen, risen, fallen, again" while drums build into a war-like beat. It's all pretty epic. 'Providence' marks the band's first use of the acoustic guitar, which works perfectly despite how it sounds on paper. But if the moment of eerie calm didn't do it for you, fear not as next up is 'Null-O', all pounding drums and screaming guitar. It all closes with 7 and a half minute epic '100 Days Of Penitence' which is where it's all let loose in the most daring piece of music Ox.Eagle.Lion.Man have attempted to date. The first minute is slow and atmospheric and then a sudden thrash of 'Killing In The Name Of'-esque guitar penetrates into the song. But only briefly and it's back to the snaking guitar and wailing vocals for another couple of minutes. It's here that the build up begins and you realize that the RATM moment earlier was a teaser of the storm to come, as the second half of the song gets seriously heavy.
When it's over you're left stunning, possibly with your face melted. But what a piece of work; 33 minutes in all - who needs an album!? The is for the Opera to be a trilogy, possibly with the 3 EPs released together at the end. But for now we have 2 testaments to the band's innovative skill, and their bravery in creating truly dark, distorted (in every sense) music that openly questions society, religion, and humanity in general. Frederick currently works for MTV and enjoyed a short relationship with Peaches Geldof, so why aren't they getting more exposure? Reverence surely beckons.
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MP3: Ox.Eagle.Lion.Man - If This Is A Man
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1 comments:
Amazing man, really enjoyed the review, says what i felt about it perfectly, love the tag of 'Peaches Geldoff' ahaha.
Also it's 'Thy Will Be Done' not 'They' ;)
On Earth, as you claim it is in heaven, But Just as the Twelve Became The Eleven, I fell for you and I fell Away, and I've Been Falling Further Each and Every Day x
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