OMERTAH — Essence (review)

Demo · 2012 · Progressive Metal

3/5 · 2020-04-01
siLLy puPPy

OMERTAH began back in 2009 in Sevastopol, Ukraine as a project for Dmitri Zayats and Dmitri Sidorenko to collaborate their desires to combines the harshness of heavy extreme metal with the more ambient and ethereal smoothness of atmospheric electronica. Due to the fact that both members were committed to their deathcore band Execute My Liberty and other commitments, the project got shelved for a few years but was picked up again in 2011.

This team worked together and recorded enough material for this one demo titled ESSENCE but since no actually releases have emerged it is often considered a bonafide EP however at a playing time of just over 44 minutes, it actually sounds like a full album to me. The reason this project hasn’t continued is due to employment issues finding the two members in different nations but the group has purportedly been working on new material all this time so it’s well within the possibilities that a legit follow-up will materialize.

The main goal of OMERTAH was to weave together extreme mathcore style metal with the soft airiness of synthesized ambience but as the project got rolling the metal part was tamed down a bit in favor of allowing it to gel more cohesively with the atmospheres. This EP actually exists in two forms. One is the five track version that clocks in at over 27 minutes and the other has eight tracks that squeaks past 44. The three extra tracks are “Endless Eve Pt 1,” “Endless Eve Pt 2” and “Horizons” however the three extra tracks are exactly of the same mold and only add more music but nothing substantially different.

This is all instrumental with a swirling atmospheric ambience leading the way. Somewhat like a more accessible version of Tangerine Dream with recurring melodies that proceed in the manner of post-rock, the ambience is accompanied djent fueled metal riffing as well as some more intricate soloing and other guitar works. The bass and drums are very subordinate to the rhythm and never deviate from the groove with rare exceptions. This is basically a layering effect where the atmospheric parts establish the overall tempo, rhythmic drive and melodic processions and the heavier metal parts simply follow along. Somewhat resembles certain heavier aspects of Porcupine Tree but not nearly as inventive.

While the production is good enough to be considered a true release, the material presented pretty much follows the same pattern and tracks began to all sound the same as the one-dimensional process continues on and on and on. This is one of those albums that makes great backing music as you can easily focus on something else while listening to it but there are intricate subtleties in the ambient synthesizers as well as minor deviations in the metal parts but overall this is very much designed to be a post-rock type of album that takes advantage of cyclical loops for the release’s entirety. This one is not bad but it’s really not great either. The lack of distinction between tracks gets old and the whole thing is like that feeling you get when you just wake up. It’s all burry and you can’t really grasp thing in totality. OK but nothing spectacular.