Denver is a hotbed for metal right now—ask us how we know!—and its next export is Our Grief is Thus, the second album from Pagan folk/death metal outfit Oak, Ash & Thorn. As you’ll hear on the song “Auras,” video streaming below, the quartet deal in a very melodic style of death metal, using sung vocals, bright lead guitar harmonies and very clean production.
You’ll still find tremolo picking, growls and blasts aplenty; it’s just half of the band’s arsenal. It’s a direction that Oak, Ash & Thorn are moving in for the entirety of Our Grief is Thus, a slight redirection from first album May Every Altar Linger and the EPs that followed. “Oak, Ash & Thorn combine their varied influences well, channeling Amon Amarth and Kataklysm smoothly alongside the power metal influences they clearly love. It’s an accessible sound and it wouldn’t be surprising to see Oak, Ash & Thorn quickly rise to new heights with it.
“’Auras’ is one of the most musically emotional moments on Our Grief Is Thus,” says guitarist/vocalist Adam Armstrong, “And it functions as a microcosm of the entire record in its dynamic range: soaring vocals and spacious chords cut with furious, blasting death/black metal and buttressed with expressive instrumental passages. Lyrically, the idea of grief permeating the rest of the album is charged with themes of yearning and redemption, and the song’s anthemic chorus resolves the turmoil with a simple message of triumph.”
The new tune comes along with a performance video, which you can watch below. You can pre-order Our Grief Is Thus via the Lost Future Bandcamp.
