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THE OATH
The Oath

Rise Above (2014)
Rating: 8/10

There may be those of you who are sick to death of hearing all this occult-influenced, female-fronted doom-laden rock, but The Oath might just change your mind. If you like your metal mystical yet above all heavy then you need to own the debut album from this quartet Berlin-based quartet, who propelled to giddy esoteric stratospheres by featuring the duo of the Swedish Linnéa Olsson (guitar) and the German Johanna Sadonis (vocals).

Admittedly, when all thrown in a hat, The Oath, alongside say Purson, Blood Ceremony et al, are not greatly different, but they all deserve their place in the occult rock scene because the noises they make will creep through your ears like liquid gold.

Yes, Sadonis is another devotee to the Jefferson Airplane school of rock in the sense that her soaring, eerie vocals are akin to Grace Slick, and as The Oath like to dabble in a touch of doomy psychedelia, it’s no shock that the comparisons will continue. However, with all manner of Jefferson Airplane-influenced bands doing their tricks over the years, there’s no real reason why bands should stray from a well-trodden path when the formula works. On this much anticipated nine-track affair, The Oath get it right.

Rise Above Records are masters at promoting such bands, but do The Oath have enough in the septic tank (in-joke!) to enable them to rise above (‘scuse the pun!) the masses? Well, this debut platter, which also boasts the talents of bassist Simon Bouteloup and drummer Andrew Prestidge, is certainly an album that will attract the masses who will be eager for a glimpse into this crystal ball of creativity.

From the off we have the majestic melancholy of ‘All Must Die’, which clambers out of its coffin like the bastard son of Motörhead-meets-Black Sabbath with a touch of Hawkwind thrown in for good measure. I’ve no doubt that The Oath have trawled the ancient scriptures of Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath) teachings to construct a black mass of a sound that is as much Candlemass as it is Deep Purple with just about every other important band in-between, and while there is such an air of familiarity in the formula, one cannot help but become bewitched by Johanna Sadonis’s enchanting yet deadly tones, which are ghost-like as they float upon the black clouds through the stark trees.

Ominous throughout, ‘All Must Die’ is the perfect way for this coven to introduce themselves to us, and the creepy combo get ever stronger. ‘Silk Road’ is equally evocative, marrying the sinister with the dreamy before the first single ‘Night Child’ comes rolling in like creaking thunder with that sexual vocal lick and catchy riff. Yep, it’s rather generic; lacking the diversity of say Purson, it acts merely as another occult-obsessed Hammer Horror vibe, evoking images of cavorting vampires, frolicking witches and lapping flames. It is good stuff, but nothing new.

And of course the murk continues, through ‘Leaving Together’, ‘Black Rainbow’ (which appeared as the flip to ‘Night Child’) and the shadowy closer ‘Psalm 7’, which all remind me of the first time I heard Danzig’s pitch black self-titled debut album (1988).

Oily riffs, leather-winged bass and ghoulish drums are all thrown into the cauldron, and the result is an extremely likeable and accessible record that creaks and moans like an old haunted house and provides thrills where necessary. Steeped in melody and folkloric history, the debut offering from The Oath is one that’ll have worshippers crowding the very gates of Hell, eager for a nibble on the fleshy nodules of the quartet. A little more diversity wouldn’t go amiss though, as Rise Above’s latest cult seeks new members.

Neil Arnold

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