John from SOJ here. Here is another new release I wanted to talk about: Beware Of Gods Upon Whom the Last Light Descends III: Behead the Oracle. Colin turned me on to this project awhile ago, but I felt like a spectator in the space, not a "commentator". After hearing the Mothertomb release and giving my 2 cents when nobody asked for it, I felt emboldened to share another creator that I love.
Jason O'Donnell is the brainchild of Beware Of Gods and the main creator, but he's joined by Kellii Scott and Eric Plonka and they all operate together to craft a beautifully dark, frightening and violent internal journey. I have no insight and I shouldn't phrase that like I have an insight to what "Upon Whom..." is trying to convey, but it just feels like a wildly introspective experiment.
Anybody that knows me, knows my first love has always been early thrash, death metal and hardcore. Those roots are what kept me coming back to Beware of Gods over and over, but there is so much more here. They are none of those things yet all of them, simultaneously. I can't quite put my finger on it. There is no beginning or end of the spectrum that Beware of Gods dances on. Jason is able to seamlessly flow from the most ferocious, blood curdling screams that make the hair on my neck stand on end to such clean and evocative melodies, with harmonies gliding in the background providing an eerie texture. Often there are almost spoken word segments that sound like they caused pain to speak into being.
More than anything, there is a driving heaviness, ferocity and power that I LOVE. Tempos range from slow-moving zombie pace to redlined on the tach and it all works so well together.
I fear offering band comparisons for many reasons as the musicians may hate the comparisons! I also don't want to convey to potential listeners a reference that might turn them off before giving them a listen, but I'm gonna anyway! Beware of Gods has a production quality that is perfectly overdriven. It feels like it's on the edge of even being contained. It reminds me a bit of Trent Reznor and the palpable desperation of Nine Inch Nails. I also hear the punishment of Soundgarden and dark simplicity of A Perfect Circle. But there is one more name I'd like to throw into the mix...VoiVod. Please hear me out...
"Upon Whom..." (for me) isn't an album you say, "I think ABC is my favorite track." You have to listen to and absorb the album as a whole. The album has to be heard as a complete unit.
Now, back to my reference to VoiVod. Beware of Gods SOUNDS NOTHING LIKE VOIVOD but both share this industrial, post-apocalyptic, barren atmosphere type of ambiance. It's oppressive and dense. You can almost smell the aggression, fear, burning carcasses on emotional battlefields and the terror of being alone in your own head in a vast wasteland. It's a VIBE.
Music is a very personal experience and the same song or album can tell 100 different stories to 100 different listeners. I don't know the true meaning of what Jason, Kellii and Eric created here, but to me the entire album feels personal and painful and angry and uncertain and scared and empowering. It's different. Treat yourself to something out of the ordinary and moving. Pick up Beware Of Gods Upon Whom the Last Light Descends III: Behead the Oracle and let yourself experience it from start to finish. Broaden your horizons and let Beware Of Gods brutalize you.
Thank you for taking risks, Beware of Gods. It's just what the doctor ordered.
John/SOJ
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