At Odds with God – “Earning Damnation” (2007)

Label : At Odds with Gods Records LLC

Review by Jon Estelle

For fans of the death metal genre, At Odds With God‘s “Earning Damnation” provides a welcome addition to the CD library. Upon first hearing the album one would think that the band is of European decent, but they are actually from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. The band originated in 2002 when guitarist Diego Montoya and drummer Dario Camacho began writing the beginnings of “Earning Damnation”. After going through a few vocalists, Nina Saile joined the line-up. Recorded and mixed at Nina’s Gorgol Production Studio in Florida and mastered by Jim Morris at Morrisound Recording, their debut was released in 2007. “Earning Damnation” contains six tracks along with an intro. At Odds With God blends aggressive melodies with a harsh brutality. I am normally not a fan of drawing comparisons between bands, but their sound will hit home with fans of Arch Enemy and other similar death metal bands. Saile can growl with the best of them and never shows any signs of slowing down.The guitars really kick in throughout the album, weaving in elements of thrash and black metal. The mix of different metal styles gives the overall package a very diverse sound. The use of acoustic guitars mixed into a few of the tracks helps to add more depth to the album. At Odds With God is a band that is not for everyone. If you are not a fan of the death metal genre they probably will not suddenly turn you on to it. For fans of harsher music, “Earning Damnation”  is a great pick up. It sounds extremely professional for a debut release. Finding a vicious sounding metal band with a female vocalist is a rarity in the United States, so At Odd With Gods takes some of the first steps to fill that gap. Worth picking up and comes highly recommended.