Oceans of Slumber

Live at the Whisky a Go Go

West Hollywood, CA

June 6th, 2018

Review and photos by Travis Baumann

Oceans of Slumber are a progressive metal group out of Houston, Texas. They incorporate elements of doom and death metal but predominantly feature melancholy story-telling with clean female vocals at the forefront.

They are on tour with Finnish legends, Insomnium, and prove to be a good match as they both feature intense songs filled with complex themes that are musically unconventional but move the listener in epic, if not often tragic, journeys.

The band consists of Cammie Gilbert supplying the heartfelt lead vocals, Sean Gary on guitars and supplementing the stories with punctuation via his extreme growled vocals, Anthony Contreras on guitars and backing vocals, Keegan Kelly on bass guitar and backing vocals, and Dobber Beverly on drums. They also had an additional member for the tour playing live synths and electronics.

This was my first time seeing them live but I have listened to their latest album, "The Banished Heart" which came out earlier this year. They are a very serious band with very heavy subject matter, often reflecting on struggle, loss, and inevitable surrender.

On stage, the members never broke mood or character. They did not banter with the audience, nor did they smile or interact. They were immersed in their world and brought it to the audience in its full emotional weight.

Their set list was primarily drawn from the latest album with "The Decay of Disregard" opening both the record and the concert. Their songs are lengthy, meandering novels following an emotional roller-coaster.

Cammie's soothing voice lulls the listener into a false sense of security only to have the heart laid bare and then figuratively torn by the juxtaposition of Gary's death metal growls. Clocking in at just under nine minutes, by the first song alone the audience was under their spell and awaiting what would come next.

"Fleeting Vigilance" and "At Dawn" mirrored their order as found on "The Banished Heart" release. Discussions with other audience members after the performance drew a common consensus; this band is really talented but also extremely heavy in subject matter and dark in mood. There is no levity to be found here and very little, if any hope.

Continuing the journey into their latest album they played "A Path to Broken Stars" before moving on to the only song from a previous release, "Winter" from the album of the same name. Another eight minute excursion into bleak themes brought their set to it's final offering.

Returning to their latest release, they played "No Color, No Light" for one last heart wrenching passage. I would say they have nearly a gothic metal sensitivity to their music and the atmosphere is thick with melancholic loss.

While many bands from Finland and other parts of Scandinavia and Europe excel in these mood-scapes, there is often beauty and other uplifting elements that transcend that layer of darkness.

There is definitely beauty here, but it never rises out of the soulful well of darkness and therefore can make a difficult impression on first time listeners going out for a night of metal. Crowd reactions were polarized but no one could deny the talent and artistry on stage.

I really enjoyed seeing them live and was impressed by the emotive power of their music.  I I especially liked the transitions from Cammie's beautiful melodic voice to the sinister growls from Gary but the best part was when all the band members sang together and for those brief moments, the choral effect of their joined voices gave the songs power to lift out of the vortex of darkness.

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