Ravenhead

Orden Ogan seem to be falling into a pattern of sorts – their second album Vale broke them into the power metal scene like seven years ago now, with a lot of very interesting prog-isms and some truly ingenious songwriting. The following Easton Hope wasn't as good, but To the End picked up the slack with a lot of strong songs. This new album Ravenhead however, falls into a kind of one-step-forward-two-steps-back kind of dance – while the band sounds professional and tight, they've sacrificed the spontaneity and surprise-factor that defined their best material.

The style is more streamlined here than ever, with lots of chugging power metal riffing, lots of flowing, waterfall-style leads and harmonies and big harmonized, layered choruses. There's not really any of the weird experimentation like “Lord of the Flies” or “Land of the Dead” from previous albums – it's all very straightforward. I think they listened to a lot of their fans, as this very much ticks off all the necessary boxes – fast, shiny, melodic power metal, but without the twists and turns I wanted from this band but I guess others didn't. It's good enough for what it is, but the songwriting is really quite average and the melodies aren't great. Certainly none of them explode out of the speakers as past songs from the band have.

A lot of these songs just sound alike, with very similar choruses – they're all so layered and choir-filled that you can barely even hear singer Sebastian Levermann underneath it all. It's sort of going for a Blind Guardian kind of effect but really doesn't hit the mark. This style would be fine if the hooks were better, but a lot of them are fairly blasé and middling. The opening title track has good riffs, but the chorus just sounds phoned-in, and it's repeated way too much to ignore. Further songs like “Evil Lies in Every Man” and “Deaf Among the Blind” fall into similar traps – very few of the songs on this album will ever end up on a “best of Orden Ogan” playlist, I don't think. Even guest performances by Chris Boltendahl and Joacim Cans, which do spice up the proceedings a bit, end up buried by the rather monotonous-sounding choirs on here, and they aren't used to their full potential, which is kind of like renting a fancy new Jaguar just to drive up the street to Walgreens and pick up a gallon of milk.

There are a few bright spots, like “Here at the End of the World” and “The Lake,” which do rock a fair amount. “F.E.V.E.R.” is pretty fun, too, but the incredibly stale “evil woman” styled lyrics kind of kill the enjoyment – I guess it's part of a conceptual story, but honestly I thought the band was a little better than this kind of stuff. Most of the other songs are just average, neither good nor bad, just kind of standard power metallish stuff. If you've heard a Rage or Blind Guardian album in the last 15 years you already know the tricks Orden Ogan are using here. The riffs can get into a pretty sweet thrashy kick here and there, but it isn't enough to make you sit up and pay attention. For a band previously with so many new ideas, this is underwhelming.

But hey, maybe judging by their track record, the next album will be good again. Who knows?