ORDEN OGAN — To the End (review)

Album · 2012 · Power Metal

4/5 · 2012-12-09
adg211288

To the End is the fourth full-length album by German power metal act Orden Ogan. It was released in 2012. Orden Ogan began life as more of a folk metal act but almost all traces of folk are gone in To the End, which is my introduction to the band’s music. Instead Orden Ogan are producing almost pure power metal, but they have a multi-facetted approach to power metal which includes sections of traditional heavy metal, symphonic metal and progressive metal, as well as the occasional folk melody to hint at their roots, albeit not in a metal context.

Since it is dominantly a power metal release however all the elements you’d expect to find, speed, melody and catchy songs, are present and correct and are the driving force behind the music. Orden Ogan’s riffs don’t quite have the sort of intensity to them that is common among the German power metal acts (of the Blind Guardian ilk), but the music is packed with energy all the same, which keeps the album flowing well. Since power metal can have a lot of overlap with the other styles Orden Ogan put into the album these sections just slip right into the album nicely and without disrupting that flow.

Even so, I can’t honestly say that To the End is any more than a solid example of the power metal genre, because honestly although I do like the vocals in general there are some parts where the delivery does go a bit too far into ‘cheese’ territory even for me, particularly some of the choruses which have a choir style to them which is interesting enough at first but by the time I’ve heard a few of them, I’ve had enough. I prefer my power metal with a bit more bite which Orden Ogan managed in part during To the End, but I’d have liked to hear them go all the way. My regard for the album could easily have been taken up a notch if they had, possibly even to top tier standards, as musically the album is diverse without losing focus of its apparent goal.

Additionally, and this is where To The End really lost some credibility with me, Orden Ogan decided to end the album on a ballad track called Take This Light. Ballads in power metal albums can either work very well, if they do something a bit special (Blind Guardian are good at this), or they can come across as just all the cheesy elements found in power metal gathered together, and then have the metal take out of them. This one is unfortunately the latter, and placing it at the end of the album is a bad move in my view, since the album previously just hurtled along with barely a pause, so it’s like the brakes had to be hammered on suddenly, and everything just falls apart. It honestly makes me want to hit the stop button after the preceding Angels War (a remake from the band’s debut album Testimonium A.D. (2004)) comes to a close.

My dislike the final song aside, Orden Ogan made a satisfying enough release with To the End. It is a solid effort within the power metal genre but I highly doubt it will appeal far beyond the genre’s devotees as To the End isn’t the sort of album that’s going to convince you of power metal’s credentials if you haven’t been a believer before. The more selective of the power metal fanbase may ultimately want to skip over this one as well, although I’d consider To the End to be a grower, as I didn’t really feel much for it on my initial listen, but the returns have become increasingly better with each spin I’ve given it. A great album tier rating is deserved, but at the end of the day the album just doesn’t stand out from the crowd quite as much as its potential should allow.

80/100

(Originally written for Heavy Metal Haven (http://metaltube.freeforums.org))