Ne Obliviscaris: Portal of I

Ne Obliviscaris is a relatively new band out of Melbourne, Australia. Portal of I, their full-length debut, is garnering lots of positive buzz and, fortunately, it is largely deserved. I think this is certainly an album that everyone should check out, especially fans of Opeth, since Ne Obliviscaris channels their canny blend of death / folk / prog / styles regularly throughout this album. The main difference, as Opeth fans will quickly recognize, is the strong presence of the violin on most of the tracks. Played by Tim Charles, who also supplies the clean vocals, the violin feels like a welcome addition to the eclectic blend of music offered up on this release. I confess that it took me a couple of listens to get used to the violin's sound, but once I got the feel for its voice within this style of music, I enjoyed it.

I suggest that listeners new to Ne Obliviscaris give the album a few listens before making a judgment about it. This was especially true for me since I thought that things really took off about half-way through the fourth track. My impression of the first few tracks was that there was just too much going on here; I wondered initially if the band shouldn't just stick with either the death metal thing or the eclectic violin thing. As I listened, though, I found the album to be stronger and stronger with each listen, especially the aforementioned second half. Be sure to listen to tracks like "As Icicles Fall" and "Of Petrichor Weaves Black Noi" for examples of this band at their best. Check out the Metallica-like attack (reminiscent of "One") about half-way through "And Plague Flowers the Kaleid."

For me, the weakest track was "Tapestry of the Starless Abst," mostly because it didn't bring together the various musical textures as well as the other tracks did. When the violin first came in, it felt a little startling; in other tracks, the violin helped weave part of the musical tapestry, but here it just seemed like it was bringing in a violin out of nowhere. I was also a little disappointed with the way the classical guitar on this track sounded--I thought the tremolo picking section in particular was rhythmically jagged, not as smooth as that style of playing typically calls for. Moreover, I thought that some of the other classical or acoustic guitar parts were played too aggressively. Classical guitar playing is a little like slow dancing, rhythmic, smooth, and romantic. Maybe I'm nitpicking, but it seems like the aggressive attack in the acoustic sections should be played more delicately, if only to bring out the unique characteristics of the guitar parts even more. The beauty of the classical guitar is that it can channel multiple voices and dynamics at once. The electric playing, especially the solos, was terrific. Listeners who love great bass players, by the way, will love this album. Brendan Brown's bass lines multiply the notes and the rhythms in outstanding ways. I was reminded, at times, of how I feel when I listen to Geddy Lee.

Track Listing:
1. Tapestry of the Starless Abst
2. Xenoflux
3. Of the Leper Butterflies
4. Forget Not
5. And Plague Flowers the Kaleid
6. As Icicles Fall
7. Of Petrichor Weaves Black Noi

Added: August 6th 2012
Reviewer: Carl Sederholm
Score:
Related Link: Band Website
Hits: 3663
Language: english

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