“AMG’s Unsigned Band Rodeö” is a time-honored tradition to showcase the most underground of the underground—the unsigned and unpromoted. This collective review treatment continues to exist to unite our writers in boot or bolster of the bands who remind us that, for better or worse, the metal underground exists as an important part of the global metal scene. The Rodeö rides on.”
Flying well under the radar, Illinois-based psychedelic sludge/doom metal duo Beware of Gods would’ve released their third installment in their Upon Whom the Last Descends series, entitled Behead the Oracle in such complete obscurity that even Metallum doesn’t know about it yet. But thanks to our resident sludge expert Cherd, Behead the Oracle entered our consciousness just in time for an assortment of ne’er-do-wells to offer their entirely unearned judgment of its mettle. Little do the Gods know that when they enter the realm of dogs, there be risk of piles. Good luck out there, and may your souls be spared. –Kenstrosity
Grin Reaper: Beware of Gods throws a lot of labels into their description of Upon Whom the Last Light Descends III: Behead the Oracle,1 all of which are apt. Cinematic, progressive, doom-laden metal toeing the line between sludge and post furnishes a rich backdrop where Beware of Gods details a dystopian narrative with elements like machine messiahs and the illusion of free will. Conceptually, this environment will feel familiar to fans of Fear Factory and The Matrix, but musically Behead the Oracle lands in an industrial-tinged sludge trudge that often reminds me of a doomy Nine Inch Nails (“Secondary Drowning,” “Disenchanted Enchanter”), even down to The Archetype’s Reznor-like croon. Instrumentally, Beware of Gods delivers convincing performances in service to Behead the Oracle’s story, where guitars and bass swell and groove in a deftly-mixed soundscape. Unfortunately, Behead the Oracle suffers a fatal flaw when it comes to length, compounded by a few tracks that can be challenging to listen to over repeated spins. “The Ghost of a One-Armed Comedian” draws my biggest complaint, as it’s a six-minute plod featuring a meandering voice-over that would be more effective if chopped in half or cut altogether. Meanwhile, closer “Starve My Eyes That I May See” drags an already overlong album on for another ten minutes. Ultimately, Beware of Gods delivers good ingredients undercut by an unsavory length and a few skippable tracks, but exhibits enough talent and intriguing ideas that I’ll check out whatever divine warning they offer next. Mixed.
Spicie Forrest: The concept album strikes again! Centered around protagonist I, Nomad, Beware of Gods’ third LP, Upon Whom the Light Descends III: Behead the Oracle travels through an industrial, post-collapse hellscape. The album’s cinematic trappings of remind me of IPs like Mad Max, Fallout, and Casshern Sins, making Descends III feel more like the soundtrack to an unwritten movie than a typical album. Primary creative force The Archetype weaves riotous, stimpak-fueled sludge (“Tectonic Boogie with the Grief Eater”), the hard-boiled spoken word of seedy, smoke-filled hideouts (“The Ghost of a One Armed Comedian”), and 90s nu-metal (“Behead the Oracle”) into a surprisingly singular vision. While there are a lot of styles on display here, they’re stitched together well, with theatrical threading embodying the irreverence necessary to survive such a hopeless world. And for such a range of metallic styles, The Archetype’s pipes rise to each occasion and complement the music suitably well. I particularly enjoyed my nerves patiently fraying at the atonal hammering of “Disenchanted Enchanter” and “Starve My Eyes That I May See,” but those two are the longest tracks on the album, and they—along with a couple others—struggle to support their own weight. And while I can understand the narrative demands of Beware of Gods’ vision, getting through Descends III in one sitting proved a struggle, largely due to having three interludes (“Conflict Code_Cursed Blessed,” “Dead Radio Daylight,” “Correction Code_Pre-emptive Strikes Against Prophecy”). Nevertheless, of 56 minutes, there’s about 40-45 minutes of solid material here. 2.5/5.0
Sentynel: I know it’s a cliché for this sort of stoner-psych music, but wow, Behead the Oracle has a problem with songs that don’t go anywhere. I was misled by Beware of Gods’ promise of “cinematic sci-fi doom/post-metal,” but make no mistake: under the Scooby-Doo mask is but a meandering stoner album with a slight industrial edge to its sound palette. It sounds like it wants to be Isis (“Conflict Code_Cursed Blessed”) by way of Mutoid Man (“Tectonic Boogie With the Grief Eater”), with a reference here or there to Kyuss/QotSA (“Dead Radio Daylight”). But we’ve hit the fourth track (“Ocean of Teeth”) before we get a song with any trajectory at all. And that’s only if you survive the six minute spoken word plod of third track “The Ghost of a One Armed Comedian,” which will certainly haunt me. The rest of the album serves up an interlude and a repetitive Monster Magnet offcut for every additional track with any interest at all (“Disenchanted Enchanter,” “Dethroning the Delusion”). There’s lots of things I should like here, and when I put this on in the background it was very easy to tune in occasionally and hear something vaguely interesting. Actually sitting down and listening to the whole record, on the other hand, was a slog. Bad.
Alekhines Gun – Utilizing a flair for concept and story telling usually found in post-hardcore, Beware of Gods has emerged with a djenty, doomy, ethereal release. Fusing slabs of Conan heft with post-metalisms and a fantastically varied vocal approach from “The Archetype”, Upon Whom the Last Light Descends II: Amnesia Island is a real mixed bag of a listen. The vocals do a good job at selling the story, as our Archetype bounces from the expected howls and yowls to full on cleans and spoken-word passages, conveying a narrative to suit the ever-shifting soundscape. Upon Whom is definitely a journey, and an engaging one, though how gripping you find it depends entirely on what you’re looking for. It’s rather light on real riffs or songs of memorability, in the traditional sense, though some real might rears its head in the grin-inducingly titled “Tectonic Boogie with the Grief Eater”, and particularly in “Ocean of Teeth (Haunted by the Glimpse of a White Light)”, the highlight of the album. But what it might lack in the brutz it makes up for in sheer personality and charm, inviting one to listen in on the bizarre and inscrutable exploits of one armed comedians one minute, only to hear the bluesy laments of a “Disenchanted Enchanter” the next, with just enough curb stompage to keep boredom from setting in. Worth a few listens, but not casual ones; really lock in and let this light descend all around you. 3.0/5.0
Kenstrosity: I wasn’t sure what to expect from Beware of Gods when they were brought to my table. Despite a fair bit of lead time, it took a while for me to wrap my head around what Behead the Oracle meant to be, what it meant to achieve. An unexpectedly fluid mix of NIN-esque industrial with Mastodonic sludge and Psychonautic post-metal, slowed down to a doomed crawl and enriched with bouts of poetic spoken word, Behead the Oracle hypnotizes as often as it confuses. With hooky tracks like “Tectonic Boogie with the Grief Eater,” “Ocean of Teeth,” and “Secondary Drowning,” Beware of Gods makes a compelling showing in the style. Competent and varied vocals blend with trippy riffs and eerie melodies in these stronger cuts to create a kaleidoscopic, but dense and dark, bluesy shroud that envelops the senses. In other areas, like the spoken word “The Ghost of a One Armed Comedian” or the overlong “Disenchanted Enchanter” and meandering closer “Starve My Eyes That I May See,” Beware of Gods loses traction as muddy storytelling and abstract character development obfuscate the record’s message in flowery language, repetitive songwriting, and lack of propulsion. Over time, though, I found myself growing more curious to understand this enigmatic record, and found substantial enjoyment in the way it flows despite its lumbering pace and occasionally monotonous sequences. It’s possible that Behead the Oracle is a bit too smart or abstract for its own good, which makes connecting more deeply with its story a challenge. Nonetheless, it’s a curious and layered affair that deserves a spin or two even if it never finds permanent residence in your rotation. Mixed.
The post AMG’s Unsigned Band Rodeö: Beware of Gods – Upon Whom The Last Light Descends III: Behead The Oracle appeared first on Angry Metal Guy.
