Narrator Review 1: Omaha’s More than Blood’s EP, “Blood Oath”.
Here we go metal fans, back for the first time its the Narrator Review 1 and have I got a treat for you. Straight outta Omaha Nebraska I bring you More Than Blood and their big bad first offering of an EP “Blood Oath.”
For fans of the likes of In Flames, Five Finger Death Punch, and Killswitch Engage, More Than Blood sounds like they are out for just that. This album has a little bit of everything a new age metaller could want, whisping guitar solos, heavier than thou breakdowns fully equipped with an onslaught of cymbal crashes, guttural vocals followed up by heart wrenching clean vocals, and catchy lyrics.
Fair warning to all you metal traditionalists, More Than Blood may not be the band to restore your faith in a genre that I’ve longed believed to be choking on itself, but, it may at least entertain you for about half hr, and if not, well it could always make a fantastic coaster!
Personally, the Narrator Review 1 falls somewhere in the middle with this Blood Oath release, it has its moments of grandeur and really wants to take flight and right when you think it will, it really doesn’t. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy this piece I actually did, but, the dull moments do not help this albums cause, if they could find a way to make the whole album shine, there is no doubt these guys could truly make a dent.
Album highlights for me are the title track “Blood Oath” love the opening of this baby, breakdown into vocals, into a shredding guitar solo that would be sure to shake the foundations of any of metals traditionalists. Musicianship is truly at a high point on this one. Then we kick into my personal favorite “Get down or Lay Down” Oooh baby, as a major In Flames junkie I gotta tell ya, this one made me crank my speakers and headbang! After your intro it kicks into a solo that would even blister the fingers of the worlds greatest air guitarist (yours truly) then we get into some more programming and a breakdown that is very welcomely interrupted by the vocalists guttural earth shaking voice. The vocals are truly this tracks shining star! I give this one the Two Horn Salute!!! \m/ well done, fellas.
I hope all you readers get a chance to check out More Than Blood, and not just take my word for it, they are definitely heading in the right direction, and with the write tutelage, could certainly be a force in the future.
The album as a whole scores 3.5 outta 5 stars for me, and I gotta say Get Down or Lay Down is truly worth the price of admission. I will talk to y’all sooner rather than later.
