Single Premiere : Obsidian Sea - Sisters ⚡️

Between Proto-Doom and Heavy-Psych, Obsidian Sea unveils the first single of Pathos

Obsidian Sea is a Bulgarian power trio formed in 2009 in Sofia, blending Doom, Proto-Metal, and Heavy-Psych. The result is a very personal and authentic take on those styles, full of emotions and twists. They’re telling melancholic but epic stories based on mystical inspirations, as the visuals and titles suggest. Pathos is going to be their fourth LP (the second on Ripple Music), to be released on February 4th, and it’s a banger!

Today we team up to present you with the first single, “Sisters”, check it out:

As it might seem like something you’ve heard a thousand times already at first, Obsidian Sea manages to keep things interesting at all times. There is more than a good dose of epic riffs that will probably make you frown in appreciation, that classic old-school Doom melodious singing, but there’s a lot more to it. The Bulgarians have a really honest approach, this album was written during months of lockdown, as a cathartic experience, to let out through heartfelt melodies everything this pandemic has been putting us through, and you can feel all of this. Pre-orders are launching through Ripple Music on December 4th.

With all the details and the refinement of their composition, which can even lean towards prog at times, the guys will take you on a journey through their mythical landscapes grounded in fantasy, to distract you from the grim world we live in. Each song is a trip of its own, as the trio weaves their dark and dreamy atmospheres, arousing various feelings, and “Sisters” is a powerful and captivating example of what they’re capable of.

They start off with epicness, but quickly temper it with a good dose of groove, and then cut to some bouncing drumming and ringing chords, just to burst into space to leave room for a moody solo, while the drums keep pounding you at the same time. They use every second wisely, with cool build-ups and contrasting parts, going back and forth between the three main moods of the song (epic/bounce/trip). They keep adding nuances with every return, never settling for any good dynamic, but always trying to push it further. That is something that I always appreciate in the music I listen to, this drive to keep exploring, trying to surprise the listener, and thus, keeping him hooked through several layers of melodies and interpretation.

That’s also something corroborated by the intent of the band with this album, as the singer explains “The very word “pathos” has, through time, accumulated a rich and sometimes contradictory meaning ranging from pity to disdain, implying care or confrontation. In any sense, it was a fitting title for an album dealing with themes like mourning the lost sense of wonder, longing for a renewed connection with one’s existence that was once seen through myth, fable, rite and could perhaps still be reached by hope, humility, and sacrifice. What could be seen thus as simply a juvenile escapist fantasy could perhaps be thought of as a rather sober look upon the fragility of the romantic and the insistence that a world bereft of wonder is also deprived of honesty and therefore inspiration.”

Keep an ear out for Obsidian Sea, who’s not just your classic go-to Doom band, but the one that can lure you in, and keep your interest.