Once again I found myself listening to an album several times before eventually deciding to write the review.  This often happens when I'm unexpectedly facing a highly original album which I can 't catagorise immediately.  At times I'm even stunned that this album is released by a metal-label but then again I wonder what other label would release something like this.  This isn't pop music, this isn't even rock music in the strict meaning of the word.  It is a brilliant album nonetheless, a very emotional and experimental trip that takes the listener to places unseen and sounds unheard.

Omrade is a duo, plus several guest musicians on vocals, saxophone and trumpet.  Along with an impressive amount of keyboards and soundscapes, these are not the standard instruments for a modern day metal band but again, this isnt really a metal band. However, they breathe a dark atmosphere and often use depressive black metal vocals.  So as far as metal is concerned, this fits perfectly between 'A Deeper Kind Of Slumber' by Tiamat or 'Childhood's End' by Ulver.

What Omrade does is fantastic.  They blend the atmosphere of dark metal with the electronics rhythms of trip-hop, the cinematic approach of post rock and the old school feel of industrial and EBM.  Then they turn all these influences into very strong songs.  Some of them fit perfectly on a dark dancefloor while others are solid rockers.   It's almost as if Tiamat made a pact with The Prodigy.

The album opens with a nice piece of dark soundscapes and percussion, named 'Mótsögn'.  By using the saxophone and trumpets, they even incorporate a dark jazz element.  This opener is pretty slow and functions mainly as an intro. 'Mann Forelder' begins like an opening tune for an atmospheric black metal concert and then suddenly comes up with breakbeats and drum & bass percussion.  At this time I'm actually scratching my head in complete amazement.

'Satellite And Narrow' sounds like a dancefloor remix of a gothic metal track (with female vocals) and it works.  I actually trapped myself dancing to this song.  'Åben Dør' is a strange avant-garde song, arguably the oddest thing on this album combining soundscapes, piano, far away, spooky voices and a Sisters Of Mercy like drum machine.

While most of the eight songs on Edari are quite uptempo, there are also some ballads.  However, 'Skam Parfyme' is no ordinary rock ballad.  No, good sir, this is a depressive dark metal song in a trip-hop outfit, complete with distorted guitars, growls and screams.  Closer 'Ottaa Sen' begins as something Pink FLoyd could have written but then turns into an amazing Die Krupps-like piece of industrial metal.

The level of variation is very high on this album, as well as the songwriting abilities of this duo.  I admit I had to listen a few times before I actually started to see how ingenius this debut really is.  Combining all these different elements and influences couldn't have been an easy task but somehow Omrade succeeded in creating something unique, convicing and versatile.  This album deviates from every genre I mentioned in this review and still is a brilliant album.    



Serge

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Sometimes I think there aren't many households like this one, at least not in the musical department.  Here, it's not uncommon that a black metal album is preceded by a post-rock album and followed by some trip-hop or punk or reggae or industrial or whatever.  It's like a neverending jukebox where all kinds of new music are inserted and listened to at any given time.  If we set the jukebox to shuffle, we're in for a longlasting rollercoaster of genres, atmospheres and emotions.  Being a music collector is somewhat comparable to going insane, that's for sure.

Enough about me, let's talk about Okapi for a while because it's definitely worth it.  This Italian turntablist and producer has brought us something we just can't resist.  By blending a number of highly danceable 'down-tempo' musical styles he has created one of our soundtracks for this summer.  Hip-hop, dub and a range of electronics are being mixed into a highly enjoyable album that sometimes reminds me of acts like Gonjasufi, The Gaslamp Killer and The Herbaliser.  So you get the idea now, it's time to start some serious head-nodding.

The quality of this album proves that it's not really a surprise that Okapi collaborated with people like Mike Patton and Peter Brotzmann and with bands like Zu, along with his own groups, Metaxu and Dogon.  We're dealing with an experienced producer who knows a little something about musical history and is not afraid to incorporate some these elements.  There's almost crooner-like vocals, ranging back to the twenties in the opening song.  There's a touch of funk, 'island music' and dubstep, all pressed into one song, 'Bad Bee'.

Title track 'Pruffoli' shows a dark dub atmosphere like Scorn could have made, mixed with some roots reggae.  This mix is extremely warm tempered an surely brings a smile on my face.  In 'Monastic Bingo' there's even a hint of drum & bass.  This song also reminds me of Funki Porcini and even a bit of bands like Tortoise or Kreidler, at least in terms of the overall 'chill' feel.  Of course ambient never is far away and it's always supported by smooth rhythms and percussion.

So here we have it, another review with a lot of big names thrown in to give you an idea of what this album sounds like.  However, aside from all these influences, I feel that this is a very personal and quite unique album, created with a lot of pleasure and enthousiasm.  To be honest, the whole review was written before I even reached 'Sheep News' and that only happens when an album truly inspires the reviewer.  This reviewer is quietly going to enjoy the rest of this splendid release a few more times now...


Serge