Welcome to another episode of The Great Metal Debate podcast. It's your man Xander again back with another album review. Today we will be looking at the brand new album from the melodic funeral doom metal band from Athens, Greece called Ocean of Grief with their 2nd studio release titled Pale Existence.
Some of my favorite melodic death metal bands include Agalloch and Be'lakor while my favorite funeral doom bands include Ahab (which I just recently talked about) and Shape of Despair. Ocean of Grief seems to take inspiration from all 4 of those bands to make ... dare I say, the perfect record. They have taken the best of all of those elements and combined their sounds to make an absolutely flawless music listening experience.
There is an immediate sense of euphoria that you'll feel within the first minute of this record before it picks up with a calming electronic guitar melody. It briefly plunges into a soothing acoustic section and then the slow bellowing vocals creep in. This song is called "Poetry For The Dead" and the middle guitar riff only further compliments the band's playing style. The vocals have a monstrous sound that provide listeners with that tingly feeling under their skin in a relaxing sort of way. The drums toward the end of this song has a somewhat tribal vibe that is short lived but grants us a smooth transition into the next track which is titled "Dale of Haunted Shades". This one only puts listeners into a deeper meditative state as it has some pinch harmonic guitar notes which can be best described as hypnotic.
Of course the vocals alone are deep and slow enough to make anyone laying down feel drowsy. But if you have your earbuds in and are walking alone on a nature trail early in the morning with heavy fog, you just might become one with mother earth or at the very least witness the ghost of a stag between the distant trees.
"Unspoken Actions" will guide you through your own imagination of a cold winter stroll or even a misty one through the forest. There is even an audible bass guitar line in the middle of this song. Anyone who knows me, knows that I'm a sucker for sweet bass playing.
But then we have a song titled "Imprisoned Between Worlds" which has some high note fingering tapping on the frets. It makes for a more upbeat moment in the depressing atmosphere of the album thus far.
"Cryptic Constellations" is a song that only further reminds me of the band that I personally strive to be in one day. This one also has an incredibly groovy solo in it too.
"Pale Wisdom" is no different from the rest of the songs on this album in terms of being very impactful. Its every bit as enjoyable as everything we have heard along the way. This entire album is a soul searching musical journey through the proverbial wilderness. Of course, just when I thought the bass solo from earlier couldn't get any better, I hear the one near this track's conclusion.
Last but certainly not least, we get the final song of the record titled "Undeserving". It's winding guitar intro is a solid lead into more of those haunting harsh vocals that I enjoy so much. The riff in this one is melodic and catchy and it appears as though they have saved their best for last. This one is an epic conclusion to my favorite album of the year so far.
While I do believe this piece of music is truly immaculate, most of the tracks just sort of tie themselves together in a way that makes the songs sound way too similar. Unless I were to spend the entire rest of the month analysing every single note played and memorized some of the lyrics, I wouldn't be able to tell you the name of the song if I walked in on it halfway. Also, the keys didn't quite stand out in the mix. Perhaps on the next album we can get some more audible symphonic elements.
You can still bet your ass I will be supporting this band every way that I can and will definitely be buying their merch from their bandcamp. I'm giving Ocean of Grief's sophomore album an 8.5 out of 10.