UK metalsmiths Opheon have a new EP entitled, As I Walk With Fire and so far it ticks all the boxes. It’s heavy, it’s loud and the artwork is beautiful. But let’s dig a little deeper, let’s see what makes this new release tick.
So, we’ve got a gnarly EP, which for starters is badass. It shows the lads in Opheon can give till it hurts, and that’s so metal. The EP itself is pretty diverse. It houses raw powerful screams as well as melodic numbers from lead singer Liam O’Sullivan, this dude can really scream! He must be a heavy metal love child of Rob Flynn and Mike Hranica, there’s a bone shattering bellow on ‘The Distance’ which is so Machine Head, keep bringing the heavy dude!
‘Lost In Undertow’ is an absolute atom bomb of a closing track. The double bass from drummer Jonathan Potter is biblical and those guitars just scream brutal mosh pit to the heavens. A slight niggle with the EP would have to be ‘The Answer’. We like melodic metal don’t get us wrong but this track is just a little too long and in the wrong place. Knock it down by a minute, and stick it in as an interlude or an opener and you’re golden. As it is however, it just kinds of breaks up the amount of energy that’s been built up from the previous heavy numbers.
All in all though this is a solid EP. Another worthy addition to the ever growing army of UK metal, which is exactly what we like to see. Two EP’s down and Opheon are in a really good position on the rock ladder, all we can say is keep at it guys you’re doing a hell of a job.
