:: Omega Crom - Blood, Steel & Fire

Omega Crom

They’ve supported the likes of Three Inches Of Blood, Zimmers Hole, Infernal Majesty, Into Eternity, Kataklysm, Stratovarius, Divinity and Hibria, and have apparently built up quite a following for themselves in the underground scene. But I’ll be honest and upfront and say that I have never heard of Omega Crom prior to receiving their debut album ‘Blood , Steel & Fire’. Hailing from Vancouver, Omega Crom have been doing the rounds over the last eight years with an ever-shifting line-up, with little more than a four track demo to their name (2003’s ‘To Arms!’). Fast forward to 2010, and the band have finally consolidated their line-up, unleashing ‘Blood , Steel & Fire’. Playing a style of metal that they’ve coined Ripping Metal, Omega Crom’s sound is probably best described as progressive power metal, with touches of old school thrash and death metal being incorporated into the mix. But while the genre tags sound enticing, the same can’t be said for what’s actually contained within ‘Blood , Steel & Fire’.

On the musical side of things, Omega Crom is great fun. The old-school power/thrash sound the band has sounds great, and the diversity of the music on offer keeps things interesting throughout the eight tracks on the album (‘Warpath’ is a short thirty second battle scene introductory track). But what really lets this album down is Johnny Ketlo’s performance on vocals. There’s no denying his enormous talent on the guitar, but when he opens his mouth, it’s sometimes a little hit and miss, and other times a complete disaster. The first single ‘Battlefield’ is a prime example of what the album has in store. There’s more than a touch of Iron Maiden heard within the band’s power metal influence, with some faster shredding guitar solos interjected throughout to keep the song moving along. But it’s Ketlo’s high octane vocals that will either have people embracing the band or casting them aside. He certainly does have a wide ranging voice (Both in the low and high ends), but it seems a little over the top and overdone at times to sound completely in synch with what the song actually needs. The darker and heavier ‘Calling Of The Dead’ is one of the album’s stronger efforts, with Ketlo relying more on his guttural growl for the most part, while ‘The Passing Of Azazel’, ‘The Prisoner (The Drawing)’ and the savage ‘F.F.O.H.T.L.’ are just some of the other tracks on the album that work better than others. The remainder doesn’t quite measure up, with ‘Blood, Steel & Fire’ sounding more like an unpolished demo rather than an official debut album from the band. Live, I have no doubt that Omega Crom absolutely slay. But on the evidence of ‘Blood , Steel & Fire’, it’s clear that the band need a little more song writing experience, and for Ketlo to develop some restraint and control on the vocal front.