Onera Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
Sure! Onera is comprised of members from past bands of various styles, some pretty notable: Tim (guitars) was in December Wolves and Watchmaker; Craig (guitars) was in local 90s band Mortuary; Curtis (vocals) was in Cortez; I (Justin- bass) was in Morgion & Keen of the Crow; Scott (drums) was in many local bands, including Tripwire. We play heavy, melodic, metal. I guess it's what some people would call progressive doom. Sometimes it's pummeling and hooky, sometimes it's ambient like post-rock. Not a lot of gruff or growling vocals, but present when it helps the mood of the song. It seems as though our songs appeal to people who are primarily into different styles.

2.Recently you have released an ep, how would you describe the musical sound tat is presented on the recording?
So, we recorded the first 3 songs we completed. We have had them for at least a couple years now, but once the line-up was set last year we went into the studio. In a way, these 3 songs represent our core sound and mix of influences...Unruhe is long and epic, it takes you on a bit of a journey. Still As A Stone is shorter and slower, a bit more straightforward and pummeling (a bit of Bolt Thrower) with a very atmospheric interlude in the middle centered around a spoken word piece about the end of the world (a highlight of the whole EP, I think). The last song, Cold Hand's Caress, is what we jokingly call the hot rocking single, as it is the shortest (7:30), and has more of a rock formula (verse-chorus-bridge) based on a really hooky riff and big chorus.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
It started as mostly lyrics about the death of loved ones and mourning them, since that was my motivation when I moved to the East from California after losing my father, and then many other loved ones shortly after; and I started writing these songs and starting this band. Most of the other guys have also experienced significant loss in recent years since this band started. Since then the lyrical content has grown to incorporate personal struggles like dark events in the past, rising above challenges, anger & frustration about people, and so on. It's always dark!

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Onera'?
It is Latin for 'burden' or "a weight". we struggled for a long time to find a name for the band. We felt this was perfect because we experienced a lot of setbacks, delays and various difficulties in forming this band and getting everything into shape as it is today.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
We have probably 6 shows under our belts so far. Semi-local towns. We are trying to not play the same area too many times, and also make sure the shows are with great and interesting bands. Some of our better sets at fun shows were at Opus in Salem, Massachusetts with Monastery/Movie On the Way Down/Bedtimemagic and 2 shows at Ralph's Diner in Worcester, Massachusetts - first with Worshipper/Electric Sinners/Bedroom Rehab Corp, and just recently as our co-release party show with our friends in Conclave (support by Hepatagua and Enhailer). We try to put real energy into our show, and Curtis has a big part in that with all of his movement to the music around the stage, and with how he engages and communicates with the audience.

6.Do you have nay touring or show plans for the future?
We definitely intend to get on the road to do some shows in other places. we just want the timing to be right, so it's not a waste of anyone's time. Right now, the buzz is out on the EP and we are making great contacts. I'd like to be back in the studio this Fall and hopefully have a release on a label early next year, continuing the momentum and starting some touring.

7.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
Yes, we are currently in the process of contacting labels to see who is interested in the band.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of doom metal?
It is still early so far, but we have heard all good things. People seem to understand what we wanted to do, and they appreciate the time we put in on recording, mixing and mastering the EP. Naturally, there will be some people who do not care for this band, or have criticisms, and we look forward to seeing that as well.

9.Are any of the band members currently involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?
Yes. Tim plays guitar in a longstanding local black metal band called Cold Northern Vengeance; and I play bass in Come To Grief, which is a sort-of reunion of 90s Boston sludge doom band Grief, where a couple of us are not original members, and the songs are mostly early material as well as new material songs we have written (should be recording later this year for a release on Fuck Yoga Records).

10.When can we expect a full length album and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We have many more songs (at least an hour of music) that we would like to record this year (hopefully Fall). The idea is to have the interested label in place and have them release the full length. We would love to see that happening by Spring 2017, but we'll all have to wait and see. As we continue to write I am sure we will continue to experiment with some of our other influences and see how it all fits into our sound.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
The influences are many, and do range, but some of the big ones for us are: Katatonia, Enslaved, Anathema, Faith No More, Bolt Thrower, Pink Floyd, Porcupine Tree, Isis, Dream Theater, Mindrot, Devin Townsend

12.What are some of your non musical interests?
I don't have a ton of free time these days, but I love to travel with my wife and our daughter, play with our dogs, hike and kayak, and play various card games/role-playing games with friends; Tim spends time with his son, and he is into guitars and gear; Scott spends time with his kids and hanging with friends; Curtis does stand-up comedy, he is certified to preside over weddings, he travels with his wife, and plays with his dogs and hangs with friends; Craig likes to golf, shoot guns, play video games and various card/role-playing games, and spend time at the lake with his wife and their kids and dog.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts
Thanks for the interview...we appreciate all the support we get! Support the music, wherever you are! It is what keeps the bands going. Fuck scenes and fuck rock star attitudes.  We plan to keep busy, so keep an eye out for new things. Follow us at www.facebook.com/oneraband or www.onera.bandcamp.com

Grizzlyman/Self Titled/Third I Rex/2016 EP Review

  Grizzlyman  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  progressive  mixture of  post,  sludge,  and  doom  metal  and  this is  a  review  of  their  self  titled  ep  which  will  be  released  in  October  by  Third  I  Rex.

  A  very  dark  and  melodic  sound  starts  off  the  ep  and  also  mixes  in  with  the  heavier sound  a  few  seconds  later  and  you  can  also hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the recording  and  the  music  also  brings  in  the  heaviness  of  sludge  and  doom  metal  along  with  soem  vocals  that  use  both  growls  and  screams.

  A  great  amount  of  post  metal  elements  can  be  heard  throughout  the  recording  and  the  music  also  gets  very  progressive  at  times  while  also  bringing  in  stoner  rock  style  melodies  at  times  and  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  very  slow  musical  direction.

  Grizzlyman  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes a melodic  form  of  post  metal  and  mixes  it  in  with t he  heaviness  of  sludge  and  doom  metal  along  with  some  progressive  touches  to  create  a  musical  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  cover  personal  struggles  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Grizzlyman  are  a  very  great  sounding  progressive  mixture  of  post,  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Adrift".  8  out  of  10. 

Onera/Olde/2016 EP Review

 Onera  are  a  band  from  New  Hampshire  that  plays  a  very  melodic  and  progressive  form  of  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of their  self  released  2016  ep  "Olde".

  Acoustic  guitar  playing  starts  off  the  ep  and  after  a  few  seconds  the  music  goes into  a  more  harder  and  melodic  direction  where  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording  and  the  solos  and  leads  also  use  a  great  amount  of  melody  along  with  the  music  being  very  progressive.

  Vocals  are  all  done  in  a  clean  singing  fashion  while  a  great portion  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  the  guitar  riffs  also  bring  in  the  heaviness  of  doom  metal  along  with  the songs  also  having  a  perfect  balance  between  acoustic  and heavy  stuff  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  very  slow  musical  direction  and  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  samples  and  death  metal.

  Onera  plays  a  style  of   doom  metal  that  they  take into  more  of  a  modern,  melodic  and  progressive  musical  direction  while  also  having  its  heavy  moments,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Onera  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  and  progressive  doom  metal  band  and  if  you are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Still  As  Stone".  8  out  of 10.

Bodily Dismembement/Cabin Of Horrors/2016 Full Length Review

  Bodily  Dismemberment  are  a  duo  from  the  Netherlands  that  plays  an  old  school  mixture  of  doom,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2016  album  "Cabin  Of  Horrors".

  Dark  sound  effects  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  horror  movie  samples  before  going  into  a  heavier  musical  direction  that  has  a  lot  of  roots  in  both  the  mid  80's  and  early  90's  and  the  riffs  also  use  a  decent  amount  of melody  and  you  can  also  hear  a  lot  of  doom  metal  elments  in  the  slower  sections  of  the  songs.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  when  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  dark  and  melodic  fashion  and  the  vocals  are  mostly  death  metal  growls  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard.

  The  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and fast  parts  along  with  one  song  bringing  in  death  metal  legend  Kam  Lee  as a  quest  and  some of  the riffs  also  bring  in  elements  of  thrash  and  one  of  the  tracks  is  all  instrumental  and  a  couple  of  the  later  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  clean  guitars  can  also  be  heard  on  the  outro.

  Bodily  Dismemberment  plays  a  musical  style  that  goes  back  to  the  death  metal  sound  of  the  mid  80's  and  early  90's  while  also  mixing  it  in  with  elements  of  doom  and  thrash  metal,  the  production  sounds  very  old  school  while  the  lyrics  are  a  concept  album  based  upon  the  Evil  Dead  movies.

  In  my  opinion  Bodily  Dismemberment  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Within  The  Woods" "One by  One"  and  "Devourer  of  Souls".  8  out  of  10.

 

Swamp Witch/The Slithering Bog/Tribunal Of The Axe/2016 Full Length Review

  Swamp  Witch  are  a  band  from  Oakland,  California  that  plays  a  mixture  of  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review of  their  2016 album  "The  Slithering  Bog"  which  was  released  by  Tribunal  Of  The  Axe.

  A  very dark  yet  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  melodic  doom  metal  style  riffing  while  the  music  brings  in  the  heaviness  of  sludge  and  you  can  also  hear all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  death  metal  growls  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  dark  yet  melodic  fashion  and  the  music  also  brings  in  a  great  amount  of  stoner  elements  while t he  vocals  give  the  songs  a  90's  doom/death  metal  vibe  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  very  slow,  dark  and  heavy  direction  from  beginning  to  ending  of  the  recording.

  Swamp  Witch  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  the  slowest  and  heaviest  styles  of  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  mixes  them  in  with  a  death  metal  vocal  approach  to  create  a  sound of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  cover  Occultism,  Esoteric,  Ancient  Myth,  Rituals  and  Psychosis  with  a  Lovecraftian  horror  vibe.

  In  my  opinion  Swamp  Witch  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture of  sludge  and doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Strange  Cults"  and  "Lost  Symbols".  8  out  of  10. 

Badr Vogu/Wroth/Tribunal Of The Axe/2016 Full Length Review

  Badr  Vogu  are  a  band  from  Oakland,  California  that  plays  a mixture  of  sludge,  crust  and  doom  metal  and  this is  a  review  of  their  2016  album  "Wroth"  which  was  released  by  Tribunal  Of  The  Axe".

  Spoken  word  samples  start  off  the  album  before  going  into a   heavier  doom  metal  direction  which  also  introduces  high  pitched  sludge  screams  onto t he  recording  while  the  riffs  also  use  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  a  great  portion  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized they  are  done  in  a  very  dark  and  melodic  fashion  while  death  metal  growls  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  spoken  word  samples  are  also  used  on  some  of  the  later  songs  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  while  also  bringing  in  elements  of  crust  and  some  of  the  slow  riffs  also  add  in  a  touch  of  southern  blues  and  as  the  album progresses  clean  guitars  can be  heard  on  some  of  the  tracks  as  well  as  a  brief  use  of  acoustic  and  slide  guitars.

  Badr  Vogu  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  mixes  them together  with  some  crust  and  death  metal  elements  as  well  as  a  touch  of  southern  blues  to  create  a  musical  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  cover  misanthropy,  societal  greed,  and  disgust  for  humanity themes.

  In  my  opinion  Badr  Vogu  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  sludge,  crust  and  doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this band.  RECOMMENDED TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Copernican  Theory"  "Beasts  Of  Burden" "Narcotically  Opaque"  and  "Of  Misanthropy  And  Malaise".  8  out  of  10.

Dejected Mass/Dirge/2016 Full Length Review

  Dejected  Mass  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  a  mixture  of  sludge,  doom  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2016  "Dirge"  which  will  be  released  on  July  21st.

  A  very  distorted  amp  sound  starts  off  the album  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  sludge  and  doom  metal  direction  along  with  some  deep  death  metal  growls  a  few  seconds  later  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording  and  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  dark  sounding  melodies  at  times.

  A  great  portion  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  you  can  also  hear  a  great  amount  of  90's  doom/death  metal  influences  in  the  bands  musical  style  while  the  sludge  elements  give  the  songs  more  of an  up  to  date  feeling  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  very  slow  yet heavy  musical  direction  without  ever  utilizing  any  guitar  solos  or  leads.

  Dejected  Mass  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  the  slowest  and  darkest  forms  of  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  mixes  it  in  with  the  heaviness of  death  metal  to  create  a  musical  style  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  cover  misery,  dejection,  pessimism,  suffering  and  death  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Dejected  Mass  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  sludge,  doom  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Crave"  and  "Worthless  Life".  8  out  of  10.