Sometimes you just need something to wipe away the cobwebs and rattle the fillings from your teeth. Swedish Doom Sludge band Ordos gives you a large spoonful of that medicine with their latest album “Fire”
In traditional Doom style, the five songs last between eight to nine minutes. Lyrically, you get what you expect with titles such as “Hell has come” or “Eyes of Fire.” Don’t let this put you off because the pure slugged out heaviness of the songs and mix of melodic and aggressive vocals hit the sweet spot.
There is also a large helping of progressive and Highly technical playing here rather than warmed-up doom riffs. On the aforementioned “Hell has come,” Emil Johansson’s vocals are closer to Killing Joke’s Jaz Coleman’s defiant vocals than Ozzy’s howl of hopelessness
The Killing Joke alike, dark, psychedelic grind continues on the fourth track, “IV”. This is the standout track for me. Equal parts Heavy and pacing that allows enough space for the riffs to hit harder than relentless bludgeoning of the listener. The ethereal backing vocals underline its economic use of space and time.
“Eyes of Fire” moves between crushing and melodic. In places, it's reminiscent of those other Swedish skull crushers Monolord. However, this album overall feels epic without straying too close to overly familiar tropes
Labelling Ordos a Doom band is a bit disingenuous and a very loose definition; their music is more akin to Crowbar or the heavier/later part of Killing Joke's than pure Sabbath worship of lesser Doom Hounds. This record is an excellent listen because of the flawless integration of NOLA-style intense heaviness and Killing Joke's use of space, with vocals reminiscent of, and alternating between, melodic yet tormented Jaz Coleman and guttural pain from Kirk Windstein.
This is not to say that Ordos is not forging their own sound, but the influences they tap into make for a far more expansive and intriguing set of songs that explore soundscapes, and it’s the strategic use of space in between the notes that elevate the songs above heaviness for the sake of heaviness. That is not to say it is not still crushingly heavy, and it is best experienced at a volume that will reduce your popularity with your neighbours.
“Fire” is an album that is Stark, Desolate, and filled with existential dread. In other words, everything that Great heavy music is supposed to represent.
-Bobo Coen
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