Ne Obliviscaris - The Aurora Veil Demo

Genre: Metal: Death/Doom

Name: Ne Obliviscaris

Album: The Aurora Veil (2007)

Drums: Fast = Good ?

Now, Australia is somewhat cut off from the world: Many of you will not know that they have managed to lose a Prime Minister, one Harold Holt, who, upon strolling down the beach one evening "plunged into the surf and disappeared". The fact that they managed to lose a Prime Minister is somewhat impressive - if only we could achieve the same. But I use this to illustrate that there is a lot in this country that you will never have heard of.

Ne Obliviscaris is but one of these. They have only one release and this is it: A three track, thirty-three minute long demo.

The first track, Tapestry Of The Starless Abstract, opens with a fantastic drum fill: alas, it is the best we shall hear (but more on that later). The melody glides in over the top and is strangely enchanting. But then comes the first flaw: despite the brilliant singer, since they are a death metal band, they feel obliged to add some screams. Although I am usually in favour of such things, this particular time I am not. They add nothing to the song, they aren't even very passionate shrieks and they quite literally follow the singing. In short, they are utterly pointless.

Another annoyance in this band is the drums. Drummer Daniel 'Mortuary' Presland won the Australian Final for the Worlds Fastest Drummer Competition, crowning him as the Fastest Feet in Australia in 2006. Now, that isn't necessarily bad. But the band's thought process seemed to go something like this:
"Aha! We've got the one of the world's fastest drummers! Clearly every second of the song must be full of pointlessly fast drums that are really very, very bad.""
Drums are not all about speed. Speaking as a drummer myself, I can attest to that although it is hard, nigh impossible to play that fast, it is more challenging, and possibly sounds better to play in 27-32 time. Having attempted both, I can speak from experience.

Fortunately, both those ills are cured by the triplet-filled acoustic bridge, where you are allowed to relax, take a few breaths and prepare yourself for the next burst of speed. And, while receiving this audible massage, my ears were pricked by a new sound. Could it be? Surely not! Yes - It's a violin. Usually, violins are thrown in at the last minute in a somewhat vain (in all senses of the word) attempt to seem cultured. Most often, it is pointless: it is either inaudible or harmonically pathetic. However here, the strings are perfect: brilliant melodies and it never falls back on repetition.

Having seen that they are not just a standard death metal band, I awaited the new break to speed with eager ears. My more favourable outlook was rewarded with more violins and a much less riff-based section. Alas, the drummer seemed intent to make me lose my faith in the world of drummers by using the much-overused "Blast Beat": 16ths or 32nds (or, as I prefer, semiquavers and semidemiquavers) are played on the bass drums, 8ths or quarters (quavers or crotchets) on the ride and a snare once a bar. It's dreadfully dull and a standard 4/4 bar is all this really fits. Admittedly, I am slightly biased, having come from an introduction to metal based on Mike Portnoy, Lars Ulrich and 'The Rev' (R.I.P.), so have come to expect more, but really: to all budding musicians out there, never fall back on Blast Beating.

After a melodic outro there is the next (effectively) self-named track. It breaks in with an acoustic intro which seamlessly fades in percussive rolls, violins and then an electric guitar, so brilliantly that you don't even notice until suddenly you realise it's happened. Although the violins here seem a little discordant at first, it's soon back to its usual standard.
Unfortunately the blast beat rears its ugly head again, after another section similar to the intro, the screams are fewer and farther between and the guitar dares to stray from the bottom three strings. Unfortunately, the bass drum is constantly pounding out 16th notes which most certainly do not add to the piece.
Screams come in towards the end, but much better this time.

The third track has another minimalist intro with soothing, if I can say that, drums. The shortest track, it is more riff-based, bar the violin, and with the obligitary blast beat in the middle, it ends in a similar manner to that with which it began.

On the whole, Ne Obliviscaris are very good: they use interesting, if not necessarily innovative, melodies and the violin is exemplary. The drums leave a lot to be desired, and the screaming is quite clearly something they were obliged to put in. But aside from those few flaws, they have potential. If they address these matters, their album, should it come out (no signs yet, alas) would fly onto my shelves.

Rating: 6/10
Summary: Death/Doom with a twist, but leaves something to be desired
Lyrical themes: As yet unknown, but caught references to paternal relations (As Icicles Fall) imply family chaos.

Track Listing:
1. Tapestry Of The Starless Extract
2. Forget Not
3. As Icicles Fall

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