ALBUM REVIEW: Geomancy – Owl
California’s OWL are a law unto themselves. Using some unknown magical energy the band can conjure up insane musical sagas that bend your mind and skew reality. With an illustrious back catalogue of reality changing songs, OWL channel the power of geomancy (divination from the configuration of a handful of earth) to bring us once more to the animated and colourful fringes of progressive psychedelia. They draw a vast array of musical influences that range from IRON MAIDEN and the NWOBHM to Dublin’s finest THIN LIZZY, as well as the legendary prog powerhouse KING CRIMSON. With combustible dual guitars, restless basslines and rapturous drums, Geomancy is an explosion of experimental creativity that keeps you on your toes with every riff.
Musical acrobatics are without a doubt OWL’s speciality. With baroque style ornamental lead playing, riffing basslines and shifting grooves, there is enough dynamism in this album to generate the power supply for a large city. There is a tangible, electric excitement running through the entirety of Geomancy. So, it is very safe to say that there is a lot to take in when you listen to this album, yet it doesn’t feel overcrowded or over the top in terms of the sheer scale and selection of riffs and styles on display. What it does maintain is a defiant, almost anti-social attitude which gives the album a rugged charm. This boils down to OWL having a gritty, balls-to-the-wall confidence, which enables them to be passionately and unapologetically themselves as well as push the boundaries of their technically proficient playing and experimental songwriting.
The album whips your imagination into a frenzy with an explosion of colours and surreal imagery. Due to the restless nature of Geomancy you simultaneously feel like you’re flying through galaxies at warp speed whilst exploring the kaleidoscopic fringes of your own mind with hypnotic black and white spirals in your eyes. This is fuelled by the dizzying dual power of Axell Baechle and Alexander (A.K.) Baechle’s guitars. The synchronicity between the brothers is awesome when it is in full flow, as it seems like they effortlessly know how to compliment and counteract each other throughout the album.
Geomancy is progressive in the old school way, which is quite refreshing. It uses a less is more approach in some quieter or more groove focused sections that are reminiscent of 1970s-era rock and then ramps it up to all out craziness with the blistering technicality of modern metal. It is a finely balanced recipe that OWL have perfected. The unusual, and in this case tremendously put together, combination of NWOBHM-style galloping riffs with the more nuanced textures of psychedelia alongside the technicality of prog is quite a remarkable feat of musical engineering. Geomancy is a mind bending listening experience for certain, and this is exemplified by the prog magnum opuses A King For Every Mountain and Shadow Of Ehe Catl. Both songs are over ten minutes and they are both a veritable feast of vintage prog rock colliding with modern metal sensibilities.
Thunderous drum rolls introduce Awaken The Mountain and it most certainly awakens the listener as it bursts into prog metal glory. From this point onwards its best you strap yourself in for a rollercoaster ride and then some. Runes continues the frantic pace, dual guitar leads morphing into MAIDEN-esque melodic riffing accompanied by chaotic BLACK SABBATH style drumming. In between this fury are brief moments of calm before the song erupts into life again. Pyramid Builder introduces you to the psychedelic side of the band’s sound; a mesmeric melody swirls around your head and gradually evolves into a triumphant retro-rock/proto-metal anthem.
Minion Of The Amethyst Cave is a conceptually hard-hitting song as it tells of the Native Americans’ savage confinement to reservations and the loss of their way of life; being cut off from their ancestral homelands whilst cruelly being surrounded by them. This concept makes for an interesting juxtaposition as the music is up-tempo and uneasily optimistic. Jupiterian Ocean takes on the form a more southern, bluesy psychedelic song with a steady groove that transports you to the deserts of California. Ghost Lanes follows a similar formula but sounds eerily sinister, as if you have stumbled somewhere forbidden, while Floating Island is a trippy, funky song deserving of its title, with a cool JIMI HENDRIX vibe running through the entirety of the song.
Whilst Geomancy isn’t easy listening it is certainly exciting listening that requires your full attention. With so many facets and aspects, there is a raw charm in its borderline anti-social chaos and OWL have demonstrated that you don’t need to be a sweep-picking, tapping, precision-engineered riff machine to be capable of some mad musical acrobatics.
Rating: 7/10
Geomancy is set for release on February 17th via Lummox Records.
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