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Ufomammut > Oro: Opus Primum > Reviews > RapeTheDead
Ufomammut - Oro: Opus Primum

U.F.M. (I) - 67%

RapeTheDead, November 10th, 2013

And so, we have arrived. After trudging through six albums' worth of filthy blackness and the occasional radiant brilliance of the cosmos, it appears we have finally reached the end of space. The zenith, the One, the eventual destination of all. Being an all-out attempt to unify every iota that encompasses their sound over two full-length pieces of work, Oro is likely Ufomammut's most ambitious effort to date, and that's saying something considering how large the scope was on their previous albums. Urlo, Vita and Poia just keep wanting do do something even bigger, and one hour's worth of material just ain't gonna cut it anymore. Personally, I was drooling with anticipation at the idea of Ufomammut doing a 2-part release; the only thing they ever needed was more space to let the cold, vacuous doom riffs dwell on you even further.

Let's have a quick little retrospective on Ufomammut's previous works: Godlike Snake through Supernaturals: Record One can be considered the era where the band fucked around with different sorts of sounds (prog, sludge, good ol' doom), while Idolum onwards marks where the band fully realized their sound and instead focused their attention on working that signature sound into much greater conceptual pieces. What that means is that after about 2007, all of the separate parts of Ufomammut sort of got crunched into one interconnected body. Instead of the keyboards being the UFO and the guitars being the mammoth, it's all just sort of woven into an unidentifiable fabric on Opus Primum. The vocals emphasize dynamic and atmosphere over clarity and enunciation more than ever before, relegating them to an accent of sorts for the guitars. More than ever now, the keyboards play off the guitars, the vocals play off the keyboards and the sense of synchronicity between these three Italians is at its absolute highest; these guys have been playing together for well over a decade now, and it shows.

The easiest way to imagine the path that Opus Primum takes is to picture an ouroboros. A few light notes echo out of the keyboard, slowly growing from primordial ooze until "Empireum" concludes with some trademark Ufomammut doom riffing. It's always been really prickly, dense and bleak, but with a very strong sense of a satisfying groove pulsating underneath. In later years, the simplistic, droning chords that made up the base of this riff style had a slightly more intricately melodic tinge sprinkled upon them, and that weaving melodic pulse is the first metallic thing you hear on this album. From "UFO Pt. 1" on their debut to "Stigma", these guys are the masters at creating fabulous introductions for themselves by building a gateway for the fat, monstrous riffs--yet they fall short of accomplishing this on "Empireum". The climactic doom riff simply slides into the song under the radar and doesn't have the incredible impact their previous opening riffs did. As the first track concluded I slowly feared that Opus Primum was wasted potential as a result of adherence to a concept, but "Aureum" quickly puts those fears to rest. Easily earning a spot on my "Best of Ufomammut" mixtape, it's a masterful crescendo of doom that shows us the opening track did not complete the ouroboros within its own confines. No, the snake only grows bigger as the album goes on until it consumes itself, collapsing, returning to the very same melody we heard at the beginning of the album once "Magickon" rolls around. Like a snake coming back around to return to its own tail, the palindromic style of composition could not possibly feel more at home than it does on Opus Primum.

Unfortunately, having such a high level of comfort with your own style sort of prevents you from taking any new risks. When you get past the smoke and mirrors, the elaborate artwork and all the trimmings and elaborate frills they dressed Oro up in you're left with something that really doesn't venture into any new areas that weren't already thoroughly mapped on Eve. Although their earlier releases weren't necessarily the greatest sounds ever put to record, Ufomammut's stark and rapid style transitions between albums were at the very least entertaining; you never quite knew what you were going to get from them next. While it is nice to hear a set of new songs from seasoned pros, one can't help but wonder if settling into their own paradigm on Oro has prevented them from creating any truly new and genial ideas. No matter how well songs like "Aureum" are written and how chunky the riffs in that song are, everything is blended so well into everything else so nothing really takes you by surprise. I wouldn't quite say that the band cramming their music into this conceptual framework killed the album all by itself, but the lack of any distinct evolution in the band's core musical tendencies makes all the extramusical aspects of the concept seem kind of superficial and tacky. The extended run time of the album(s) only means that Opus Primum gives a more detailed narration to the paths they already traveled down, and while that does make for longer and more concentrated surges of doom riffs, that also means that there's lots of wandering keyboard breaks that you have to wait through to get to them.

I wish I could leave the score blank. No matter what numerical rating I assign this release, it never seems to accurately represent how much I enjoy this album, because from a more objective standpoint, this is the album with the highest level of musicianship, vision and technical skill than pretty much any other Ufomammut album. In a logical world, I would be giving this the highest score I've ever given one of their albums, but success in those aforementioned areas alone does not necessarily mean I am going to enjoy the music. But god damn it, I liked Eve! The inviting yet crushing feel on that was definitely a cut above most modern doom coming out today, and they haven't really gone anywhere since that album came out. I guess that has to be it- even though Eve was good for what it was, part of Ufomammut's draw is the novelty of the new spices they add to each album, and there are none of those on Opus Primum once you get past the cover art and lyrics and whatnot. The first part of the saga has failed to perk my interest, but will the closing chapter in this series reconcile my love for this band? Is Opus Alter going to go beyond what I expected and force me to reevaluate my stance on this album? Only the next review will tell...

(PS: I just realized that the name Ufomammut technically means "unidentified flying object mammoth", which is kind of a dumb redundancy. Hence, U.F.M., in case you were wondering. I really doubt you were- hell, I barely even read over my own titles before I submit them. Whatever. Okay, this footnote's gone on for too long. See you at Opus Alter!)