Osakolainen

***½ (3½/5)

review by: Milja Seppälä
review date: issue #3/07

Depth Beyond One's (DBO): Ebb

DBO is five-headed, quite fresh group from Oulu that plays heavy-like progrock. In 2006 DBO put out fairly well reviewed Soledad In The Gale -demo and it was followed by next spring's self-published EP called Ebb. Ebb earned attension from metal radio show called "Metalliliitto", where it was chosen as a demo of the month, and it has gotten mostly good reviews from critics as well. Putting DBO's music into tight frames is hard and even impossible task to do. At the same time it brings new dimension to listener and to musicians as well (I guess), when the music isn't held into tight and depressing categories. Influences can be heard from different music styles. Band itself describes their music as a bouncing metal, where one can find acoutsic parts, funk, samba and even jazz. So quite fresh breath to Oulu's and Finland's music scene as well.

Ebb surprised me fully. It's hard to understand how this young and unexperienced band can sound so ready and original. Record's three songs are very versatile and different. The songs, like in good prog, search bravely new direction without losing the core. This is quite an achievement from young band, noticing that the genre isn't the easiest to handle. Prog musicians often fall into unnecessary skill-showing and the greater meaning vanishes. Luckily DBO doesn't fall into that, though the technic abilities are in good shape. However it's the vocalist's authentic output that brings the soul to the bouncing and diverse songs. Vocals merges smoothly to the music's atmosphere; darkness, nostalgia, melancholy and absurdity can be touched. Sometimes however the songs grew too theatrical, although the controlled dramaticity brings elegant touch to DBO's music. Still the biggest surprise for me were the long solo parts. As a greatest enemy of solos, I wasn't irritated with them.

Ebb that travels along dark paths is well produced and it gets you waiting for the full-lenght studio album. Hopefully DBO can stick on their originally bouncing style until the and of the world.