Oceans on Orion – Start from Nothing

Many years of highly satisfactory auditory experience have taught me that if prog metal is your priority, Israel is a good place to go. The output of creative talent coming from this little Mediterranean country is an absolute cornucopia for the intellectual of sounds, or really for anyone who wants to enjoy some sick metal tunes with an unexpected twist. And that is why today, we are looking at the debut release of another promising Israeli newcomer. You might wonder how one could transport entire Oceans all the way to the constellation of Orion. As with any seemingly impossible task, the answer is to “Start From Nothing“.

And from nothing, we take off with a banger! The album opener and title track already gives a very good idea of what you can expect from the album. It’s a fun, catchy, slightly melancholic and emotional dose of proggy power metal with some rough ends to satisfy the more rugged, beefy metalheads as well. Despite obvious prog influences, Oceans on Orion keep their music quite formulaic and straightforward, and I’m glad to say they know how to make that effective rather than boring. As a listener of complex music, I find it refreshing to let my brain take a breath and jam something relaxing for a change. This album did exactly that for me.

Oceans on Orion – Start From Nothing

In terms of riff and drum patterns, Oceans on Orion goes for the more groovy and mid-tempo edge of power metal. They have a strong Kamelot vibe, but they aim to make you bang your head and feel the beat rather than sinking into double bass drums like every generic power metal band out there. The riffs are often galloping and down-picking, which provides just the right amount of punch in an album that is otherwise quite melodic. There are also moments of syncopated and trippy rhythms (‘The Flaw’). They’re not overdone, but they show up every now and then to add the prog factor. The bass shines the most over verses (see ‘Indifferent Light’ or ‘Confront Yourself’) where the guitar riff disappears for a while and clean guitars are used instead, allowing for the riff to bring the punch back in later.

On top of this, there are a lot of guitar leads and very satisfying use of keyboard, which I assume might be sampled since there is no keyboardist listed in the line-up. The guitar leads are a big part of what defines the sound, not only due to the solos, but also due to the melodies sprinkled in key moments across the songs, used to link verses to pre-choruses or choruses or to bridge different sections of a song, or also appearing as melodic themes through certain parts. More than this, I really enjoyed the varied approach to writing the actual solos. While the one in ‘Killing the Messenger’ shows some fabulous shredding, technical display is never the main point of solos. In fact, the highly melodic lead in ‘Tomorrow’s Rain’ brings a melancholic warm feeling, while the wailing bends in ‘The Flaw’ get quite dramatic and intense in expression. The guitar lead is overall a very vibrant instrument on this album.

Oceans on Orion – Weaponized Misery (ft. Ran Yerushalmi)

The vocals are mostly delivered in typical high-pitched, soaring power metal style, but once again, they are more heartfelt and emotional, adding a certain softness as opposed to the typical balls-to-the-wall, dragon-slaying “woaaah” you’d expect from generic power metal. The lyrics emphasize the same range of emotion, mostly dealing with various relationship situations, psychological themes and confrontational dynamics. Vocalist Lev Kerzhner also diversifies the vocal palette by descending into lower registers over softer, more brooding instrumental sections. He also unlocks a more shouty side of his voice that fits well in some of the heavier songs, (‘Start From Nothing’, ‘Weaponized Misery’) but isn’t used very often.

After all those pieces are put together, you have a good recipe for effective, enjoyable proggy melodic metal. But writing a whole album after a recipe carries the risk of becoming redundant. And they clearly knew that, cos they had great ideas to mix it up. First off, the songs vary in their overall vibes. ‘Weaponized Misery’ is marching and punchy, ‘Love’ is cheesy and emotional, ‘The Flaw’ is epic, and so on. And while the song structures are quite basic, the bridge sections tend to throw some curveballs you don’t expect. Here I need to point out the atmospheric groove in ‘Tomorrow’s Rain’ and the head-bangable drop in ‘The Flaw’. Then the icing on the cake comes from the guest vocalists. Ran Yerushalmi of Walkways turns the second track into a moshpit inducing banger, with his growls, while Aliki Katriou‘s (Eight Lives Down) raw scream delivery makes ‘Tame’ the most ominous and engaging song of the whole bunch, and one of my personal favourites as well.

Oceans on Orion – Tame (ft. Aliki Katiriou)

I would still say Oceans on Orion has some room for improvement. The sound quality isn’t perfect and many of the chorus melodies, although catchy and enjoyable, tend to get somewhat generic. But as a whole album, ‘Start From Nothing’ is a striking and engaging record, and especially for a debut, I find it truly remarkable.

Track List:

1. Start From Nothing (04:01)
2. Weaponized Misery (ft. Ran Yerushalmi) (03:53)
3. Tomorrow’s Rain (04:15)
4. The Flaw (04:30)
5. Indifferent Light (04:00)
6. Love (03:33)
7. Tame (ft. Aliki Katriou) (04:30)
8. Killing the Messenger (03:58)
9. Confront Yourself (03:54)