Omega Crom – Blood, Steel and Fire

Vancouver based metal outfit Omega Crom has been a fixture in the local metal scene for a while now, but are only now releasing their full-length debut.  Over the past few years they’ve gained an unquestioned reputation for putting on furious live shows featuring an unmatched energy and commanding stage presence.  Furthermore, their diverse influences, ranging from crunching death metal to ambitious power metal, have ensured them a diverse appeal, likely responsible their live show’s growing appreciation.  So the question becomes, how does Omega Crom’s raw enthusiasm transfer onto the single nine-track album that is Blood, Steel & Fire?

For the most part, Blood Steel & Fire captures Omega Crom’s sense of energy quite respectably.  The album opens with “Warpath,” a thirty-second medieval castle siege instantly placing the band along metal fantasy universe staples like Manowar, Blind Guardian, and Iced Earth.  While not necessarily as overboard as some of the more indulgent narratives out there, the association helps Omega Cromachieve a desired sense of scale.  Consequently, when “Battlefield” follows, a sense of imagery coherently binds the band’s diverse influences.  After all, “Battlefield” hits listeners like a battering ram pounding at a fortress gate.

Vocally, Blood, Steel & Fire has it all.  Lead vocalist Johnny Ketlo soars with the highest falsetto wails – easily piercing the heavens and reaching the ears of the gods Omega Crom speaks of.  But Ketlo also belts a tougher mid-range cry – something along the lines of Iced Earth’s Jon Schaffer – and his band mates contribute some hardcore guttural screams in the vein of Earth Crisis.  Each track contains a separate focus.  For example, “Calling Of The Dead” almost entirely submits to a death metal style, whereas “The Prisoner (The Drawing)” settles around the mid-range.   Admittedly, Ketlo could probably tone down and explore his falsetto range more completely.  As it stands now he simply aims for the top, remaining perched on the highest of peaks until the next stylistic switch.  Even so, the combination should find appreciation among a wide range of metal heads, since each approach goes hand in hand.

Instrumentally the band can do no wrong – although their ambition sometimes lures them off course.  Their uncanny combination of death and power metal feels at home with the best of them.  Tracks like the aforementioned “Battlefield” reinforce the album’s grand feel, featuring chords mimicking galloping horses, and stadium filling grandeur.  Meanwhile, tracks like “The Passing Of Azazel” lather on the aggression with lead guitarist Wayne Holden shredding through riffs and upping the tempo for speedy power solos.  Unfortunately, sometimes the band gets carried away, seemingly inserting solos for the sake of showing off.  It’s far from a fatal flaw, but the band would do well to focus their already well-honed skills more productively.

Overall, Blood, Steel & Fire serves as a respectable introduction to the metal stylings of Omega Crom.  Their wide range of source material should make for a wide appeal within the metal genre; the intense sense of energy should keep listeners energized; and the band’s technical skill showcases a group oozing potential.  Given some more time and refinement, Omega Crom will likely produce some truly epic metal masterpieces.