Label: Century Media Records
Review by Alysha Hayden
Oceans of Slumber are a progressive metal band based out of Houston, Texas in the US. Comprising of Cammie Gilbert on vocals, Dobber Beverly on drums, Anthony Contreras on guitar, Sean Gary also plucking those guitar strings, Keegan Kelly on bass and lastly Uaeb Yelsaeb on the synthesizers. The “Blue” EP opens with Candlesmass‘s cover “Solitude” where Cammie‘s voice absolutely gives this song the hauntingly beautiful lyrics the spine tingling emotion they needed. Instantly her voice reminded me of the talented Florence Welch from Florence and the Machine. They kicked this track up a notch and dare I say, made it better. OoS couldn’t have made a better selection for the opening of this record. Next they pay respect to metal legends, Led Zeppelin with a cover of the iconic “Kashmir” giving us a luscious taste of Cammie‘s range while they make the song their own. “Turpentine” slows things down in a smoother sound that could be confused for easy listening with its soulful through notes. This new track will make an appearance on their forthcoming album from Century Media Records which is still to be named.“The Wanderer” cover slides us back into progressive with a nod to Emperor and a sharp clean sound that does the original justice. This instrumental track was a good pick to break up the album, especially with its intricate guitar riffs. We first heard Memoriam on Oceans of Slumber‘s first album “Athereal” however the band decided to recut it for “Blue” now that they have a new frontwoman. While I enjoyed the “Athereal” version with its more traditional metal sound, I honestly prefer the Blue Studio Edition. Cammie manages to draw so much more emotion out of the lyrics than the original ever dared to.To perfectly close off this extended play of the talented Oceans of Slumber we have a cover of Pink Floyd’s “On the Turning Away”. I felt that they chose the safer route with this cover and kept very close to Floyd’s version however it paid off. This song didn’t need a different flavour, it’s perfect the way it is. Bravo.
Rating – 80/100
Tracklist
- Solitude (Candlemass cover)
- Kashmir (Led Zeppelin cover)
- Turpentine (Reprise)
- The Wanderer (Emperor cover)
- Memoriam (Blue Studio Edition)
- On the Turning Away (Pink Floyd cover)
Line Up
- Cammie Gilbert – Vocals
- Anthony Contreras – Guitar
- Sean Gary – Guitar
- Keegan Kelly – Bass
- Uaeb Yelsaeb – Synthesizers
- Dobber Beverly – Drums