All is one --- Orphaned Land --- 2013 (Century Media)
Known for fusing the music of their native Israel with progressive, death and doom metal, Orphaned Land are one of the best known metal bands in that country, and their efforts to help bring about a peaceful solution to the Arab/Israeli conflict has led to calls for them to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. At the time of writing, this has not yet happened, nor really is it likely to. But it shows the deep committment and passion the band have not only to peace as an end, but to ridding their homeland of hatreds and prejudices that have hung over the Middle East for almost seventy years now. I really like the cover, with its melding of three religious symbols: the Star of David, the Turkish crescent and of course the Cross. Says so much with one image, and really brings the idea of the title of the album to life.
There's no mistaking the arabic influences on the opener, and title track, and there's a real progressive metal punch to it as it rocks along with hard guitar and keyboards along with some other instruments I can't name but are probably ethnic to the region. Great vocal choir adds a sense of drama and triumph to the song, and the singer, Kobi Farhi has a nice clear voice. I think it's bouzouki, or oud maybe that opens "The simple man", a slower, more restrained piece with chugging guitar and measured, military drumming. Then it hits its groove and it's very arabic indeed. I believe Orphaned Land use belly dancers on stage, and I can see one gyrating to this certainly.
The first ballad is also I think the B-side of their current single; "Brother" sways along nicely with a sort of orchestrated feel, while "Let the truce be known" is also slow but more of an anthemic feel to this, with eastern keyboard touches and riffs, a lot of power and drama and a sense of building frustration I would think too. "Through fire and water" has some very ethnic instrument opening it, maybe oud or saz, or even chumbush, if I had any idea what any of those are! Well, I know an oud is a sort of lute-like guitar, and saz? Another guitar/lute thing. Chumbush I don't know. But there are great female vocals and some orchestration with what sound like Israeli lyric making this one of the standouts on the album so far.
A hurried, angry spoken vocal to "Fail" over harsh guitar and a rising sense of tension, with for the first time growled vocals and I have to say they don't grate; they actually fit with the overall atmosphere of this song. I don't mind them because I know the singer can and does sing, so on this occasion, though I probably would have preferred not to have any, I can overlook death growls. Excellent work on the guitar from Chen Balbus or Yossi Sassi, can't say which as they're both axemen in addition to Balbus playing the piano and, er, xylophone! Sort of Iron Maiden feel to the guitar here, and of course a very arabic sound.
I must say I'm really enjoying this album, a lot more than I thought I would, though I had a feeling I would like it. I'm listening to it on Spotify for this review but I intend to buy it for myself. Next up is an instrumental, the only one on the album, and it's a mixture of guitar, oud and saz from what I can hear, called "Freedom". Impressive. The next two tracks are in either Arabic or Israeli, don't ask me which, but it's definitely a language with a lot of squiggly lines and dots! "Shama'im" is a slow traditional-sounding song, not too much of the metal about this: almost puts me in mind of Eurovision songs, though it's not that bad! Great effort again from the choir, and if I could speak whatever this language is I could tell you what it's about, but I can't so I can't.
There's certainly a metal influence in the second one though. "Ya benaye" is driven on hard guitar and with a kind of crooning, chanting vocal from Farhi. "Our own messiah" then takes us back into English, with a snarly, gutteral vocal for a few seconds before it settles down in a hard rock grinder with some really nice vocal harmonies and keys. We end on "Children", the longest track at just over seven minutes and with a really nice lush keyboard introduction, very classical sounding which then explodes with both hard guitar and what sounds like violin but I think may be synth, stomping drumming and a great vocal. Excellent buildup near the end with a choir and vocal harmonies then a superb guitar solo and the whole effect is really of something coming to a triumphant close, which is definitely how I see this album.
TRACKLISTING
1. All is one
2. The simple man
3. Brother
4. Let the truce be known
5. Through fire and water
6. Fail
7. Freedom
8. Shama'im
9. Ya Benaye
10. Our own messiah
11. Children
Like many of the bands reviewed here this month, this is my first taste of Orphaned Land. They've immediately impressed me, both with their humanity and dedication to peace, and with their musical talent. I have a feeling I will be ordering some if not all of their albums before long. Israel is not usually a country you look to when discussing heavy metal: the Middle East is generally religiously and politically predisposed against such music, from what little I know of the region, viewing it both as "the devil's music" and being of "western influences". But if those who put the music down would only stop and listen to the lyrics, they might manage to see beyond their own blind prejudices and preconceptions, and realise that in a wounded, orphaned land, music can be the healing agent.
You know, in the end, it may not be presidents or the United Nations or even Bono who brings peace to the Middle East. If they could only get all these guys to strap on strats and jam together, well, you know, music is the universal language, and sometimes it can just about make miracles happen.
Read more here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orphaned_Land