Review written by Stijn “Metal Shredder” Daneels.

“Entropic Entity” is Omicron’s self-released debut album and is sent directly to us by the band. It kicks off with an instrumental track called “Darkened Skies,” a bit of a weird intro that begins with dark ambience before transforming into something more majestic with melodies that remind me of ancient Egypt (getting some Powerslave video game vibes here). The intro did, however, overstay its welcome and I would’ve certainly cut out the final 30 seconds.

Omicron gets going for real with “Carriage of Makers” and after that overly long intro I’m glad that Omicron immediately fires on all cylinders. The song feels melodic, has rhythmic drum beats, raging vocals and heavy bass that gives the song a nice crunch. The song also features some well-timed slowdowns that Omicron utilizes to provide some heavy guitar shredding.

Next up is the single “Obsidian” and this song adds a bit of symphony to Omicron’s death metal style and I quite like it because it makes the song feel a bit more grandiose. The echoing vocals around the 2-minute mark was quite effective and other than that, the song slams on from beginning to end with intense speed. Then comes a creepy tune called “Answers” and it’s one of my favorite tracks on this full-length. It features more varied vocals with Hannes delivering black metal shrieks and hisses in addition to his usual raw growls as well as some female backings and finally the song begins and ends with some beautiful melodic guitar work. A song that, unlike some of the other tracks on this album, makes effective use of its 5-minute runtime. 

Then comes “The Harvest” and this one is another highlight track for me thanks to its symphonic undertones, the fast pace (thanks in particular to the hectic drums) and the guitar solo in the middle. The follow-up “Burn the Hive” begins with electronic beats and guitar riffs that give the song a dark sci-fi feel, this whole dark symphonic undertone continues and even gets cranked up further with some female chants in the song’s latter part, a pretty impressive tune overall.

“Discord of Realms” is another beautifully atmospheric tune wherein the death metal barrages are intertwined with “peaceful” ambience. The album’s penultimate track “Ashes” features a slow male with female duet with soft but impactful drums before it explodes into a raging tune. The song further switches between the melancholic orchestra and the pounding death metal riffs. The album finishes with “Corporeal Hell,” the longest track on the full-length but again it feels shorter than it appears. I don’t have much to say about this track, except that this tune features pretty much everything I’ve heard of Omicron before into one sweet finale.

Omicron describe themselves as atmospheric symphonic death metal and I agree with that description. While its core is death metal, the additional ambient and symphonic bells and whistles make sure Omicron feels like more than just another solid but generic death metal act. Their style reminds me of something like Fleshgod Apocalypse, albeit less bombastic and grittier. I really hope they’ll further expand on this peculiar symphonic death cocktail in the future.

There are, however, a couple of things that keeps Omicron’s “Entropic Entity” from reaching its full potential. I think the songs on this album could’ve trimmed down a little and I also believe the production is a bit lackluster and it prevents the songs from shining at their brightest. But still, Omicron has gone quite a long way compared to how they were four years ago when I first listened to them.

The artwork of Omicron’s “Entropic Entity” features a black and blue apocalyptic scene with a space ship sending a bright white beam into a structure that looks a bit like the ancient Mayan city of Chichen Itza. The whole image reminds of that famous scene in the Independence Day movie wherein the alien ships all hover above world-famous landmarks before dropping down their destructive laser beams. In terms of lyrics, Omicron’s Entropic Entity” follows an apocalyptic theme wherein humanity is near extinction and now is at the mercy of the ancient gods of the earth. While this theme is not very original, I do like the combination of apocalypse and ancient mythologies.

I must say the 3 part combo of “Answers,” “The Harvest” and “Burn The Hive” is the album’s headliner. They all are versatile tunes that breathe with atmosphere and have a subtle sense of spectacle to them, not to mention all three of them feel shorter than they actually are. And I also liked the album’s finale “Corporeal Hell” quite a lot. It feels like a quintessential Omicron song that shows off all the elements that were featured in the earlier Omicron songs.

The weakest tracks on Omicron’s “Entropic Entity” are easily those that overstay their welcome and I specifically talk about songs like the unnecessarily long “Darkened Skies” intro and the rather generic “Carriage of Makers” track that follows it. Fortunately, after those two duds Omicron gradually showcases more and more of their musical tricks but if it were for me, I would’ve cut out of those 2 tracks and open up with something like “Burn the Hive” which has quite an impactful opening beat.

7,5 burning hives out of 10. While their 2020 single already offered some nice things, it’s great to see Omicron took the time and effort to significantly improve their craft. This “Entropic Entity” album features flexible, old-school death metal spiced up with ambient, electronic and symphonic touches. Omicron is a band that I can warmly recommend if you’re looking for death metal that’s less orthodox and more cinematic.

Now go and enjoy the music video of "Answers."