The Oath

Lord Mountain’s first album offers a style that is so straightforward yet oddly tricky to describe. It sits on the crossroads between doom and classic metal with heavy seventies leanings and a rustic atmosphere throughout. It never reaches for the bombast of similarly retro bands like Wytch Hazel or Green Lung, but rather feels almost like a sped up answer to something like Witchcraft or Hour of 13.

Going along with that, the musicianship reflects its Thin Lizzy meets Sabbath aspirations with a solid workman attitude. The guitars and bass benefit from a full production job as the former digs into tight chugs while the latter plays off the energetic drums with an in your face boom. The vocals top it off with thematic Ozzy-esque calls, admittedly coming off rather plain but ultimately getting the job done.

While that plainness also shows up in the songwriting, the song order is pretty nifty with the upbeat rockers put up front and the more doom-leaning tracks waiting in the back. The latter tracks just might be the strongest on display with “Serpent Temple” putting in a steady “Emerald”-esque match and the title track closing things out with the most dramatic riff set. Fortunately the other songs are all pretty competent with “Well of Fates” putting in a memorable chorus and “The Last Crossing” coming out with the fastest fervor.

Overall, The Oath reflects Lord Mountain as a band that’s decent at what they do but ultimately missing some kind of ‘it’ factor. The doomy hard rock style is promising and the playing is tight enough to sell it, but I find myself wondering how much stronger it could’ve been with more standout hooks or a more charismatic vocalist on board. It’s worth checking out for fans of this stile, but there are others who did it better.