03/22/2022
Omnium Gatherum
Crucible
Madison, WI

Finnish death metal is its own category in the vast expanse of the Metalverse. What happens when within that specific genre of awesomeness you add a ton of melody and harmonizing to it? You get Omnium Gatherum. Their sound is so unique. Nine albums later they remain, so creative. Last year they released, “Origin”. A massively guitar-driven album. Despite that, they haven’t mutated from what makes them great. The consistency in their songwriting should be applauded.

Being armed with all of their talent and knowledge, they stormed into Crucible and gave the eager attendees an in-your-face performance. Crucible is basically a huge, black room with a stage and a bar off to the side behind a wall. The stage has all of its light over the center of the stage. The corners and back of the stage are dark yet dimly light if the angle is just right. Luckily, that isn’t much of an issue for Omnium Gatherum, they are extremely active and move around the stage often. Not only that they stand right on the very front lip of the stage or have one foot up on the monitors.

Frontman Jukka Pelkonen had his vocals on point. His ability to switch cadences on a drop of a dime while screaming or singing was mighty impressive. At times his vocal projection didn’t need a microphone to amplify it. He was full force. Frequently he held out the metal horns that also doubled as part of their insignia. He often touched horns with fans during songs to create a live rendition of their insignia as well.

All in all, they left me with no doubt that their live show cements their legacy within Finnish metal. The straightforward, fast-paced riffs continually break way for smoother melodies. The classical training and historically sound Finnish music scenes influences are noticeable all over their set. The confidence in their artistry is well noticed. Overall, their triumphant performance with a hungry crowd couldn’t have made the evening any more perfect. I am kicking myself for never seeing these guys before, but the building hype in my head was absolutely answered, if not exceeded in multiple ways. 

Setlist:
1. Emergence
2. Paragon
3. The Pit
4. Rest In Your Heart
5. Reckoning
6. Frontiers
7. The Unknowing
8. Be The Sky
9. Nail
10. Friction
11. New World Shadows
12. Gods Go First
13. Shadows
14. Luoto
15. New Dynamic
16. Solemn