Oceans of Slumber - Where Gods Fear to Speak

Angry Metal Guy

Oceans of Slumber has earned one of the more consistently positive receptions on this here blog. With each new release, the band deftly toed the line between maintaining an inimitable voice in the metalverse and continuously exploring the limits of their sound. This uncommon willingness to nourish their core spirit while allowing its corporeal form to evolve bears the mark of true artistry. Impressively, through every permutation of their music—regardless of how the public received it—Oceans of Slumber carved itself a niche in the metal canon. With their sixth album, entitled Where Gods Fear to Speak, Oceans of Slumber comes full circle, armed with the knowledge, maturity, and experience they’ve accrued throughout their distinguished career.

Since Winter, Oceans of Slumber has represented one of the most idiosyncratic entities in metal, and Where Gods Fear to Speak finds that entity at its most mature and refined. The band’s sound is a novel amalgamation of progressive metal, black and death metal, and contemplative doom, and within that blueprint, Cammie Beverly’s¹ singularly soulful voice and poignant lyrics ring with an unlikely power, bearing a rare emotional depth. Alex Davis and Chris Kritikos wield their axes with aplomb, using chunky riffs, transcendent tremolos, and tender plucks in devout service to Oceans of Slumber’s musical mission. Meanwhile, Semir Özerkan (bass) and Dobber Beverly (drums) propel this material with a varied and adaptable rhythmic palette that provides texture and gravity to even the most straightforward measures.

Where Gods Fear To Speak by Oceans of Slumber

Where the band’s back catalog challenged listeners with uncanny construction (Winter), overwhelming emotional weight (The Banished Heart), overwrought arrangements (S/T), or stark deviations from an established style (Starlight and Ash), Where Gods Fear to Speak finds balance at last. Death-forward tracks “Where Gods Fear to Speak,” “Don’t Come Back from Hell Empty Handed,” and “The Impermanence of Fate” deliver immense heft. Passionate and heartfelt, “Wish,” “Poem of Ecstasy,” and “Prayer” reveal that once-banished heart that bleeds before listening witnesses. Oceans of Slumber’s sultry accessibility, sprung in part from the Southern detours taken in their immediate past, provides an effective structural scaffolding to support “Run from the Light,” “The Given Dream,” and “I Will Break the Pride of Your Will.” Yet, these compositions aren’t disjointed, haphazard, or reckless. Across the board, Oceans of Slumber takes elements from their entire body of work—implementing lessons learned after every endeavor thus far undertaken—and uses them to develop each idea into fully realized, impactful pieces integral to the whole.

Meanwhile, Oceans of Slumber instills a familiar dichotomy within Where Gods Fear to Speak’s storytelling. Among their trademark ominous, mournful, doom-laden soundscapes, a ray of loving light shines through. At times, it feels empowering, as if a better place that lies beyond a life spent in darkness and strife is finally within reach (“The Impermanence of Fate”). However, as seen in all Oceans of Slumber material, these and other nuances gained presence and vibrancy only after I invested a lot of time and focus in the work. Where Gods Fear to Speak is quintessentially Oceans of Slumber in that respect. It denies its audience immediate gratification, reserving its greater rewards for patient and dedicated listeners instead. This strategy is always a double-edged sword. On one hand, casual listeners might not clear the threshold that separates a passing engagement from a lifelong relationship with this record. On the other, committed listeners will discover that Where Gods Fear to Speak offers an immersive, gripping, and affecting experience that becomes increasingly difficult to live without.

As I wrote this review, I realized how important Oceans of Slumber is in the metal pantheon. While all of their records have flaws, excellence and originality abounds in even greater abundance. With a core sound that cannot be replicated, any new record by these Texans is a celebration of artistry and the unique artist’s voice. While every Oceans of Slumber album has showcased aspects of that artistic voice, Where Gods Fear to Speak refines everything that came before into something that stands out as epic and new. Where Gods Fear to Speak is the culmination of everything Oceans of Slumber is, everything they have been, and hopefully just the beginning of what they’ll become.



Rating: Great!
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Season of Mist
Websites: oceansofslumber.com | oceansofslumber.bandcamp.com
Releases Worldwide: September 13th, 2024

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