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Doug Fir Lounge . Portland, OR
Reviewed by Vivian Hua on 07/19
Tagged 2009 doom metal om psychedelic san francisco bands sludge southern lord records stoner rock
Prior to watching Om, I had absolutely no idea what kind of band they were. Imagine my surprise, then, when the San Francisco-based doom metal trio turned out to be one of my favorite Musicfest NW performances! Especially because I'd compare watching Om to watching your friends playing music in the living room -- only... your friends have no idea you're actually alive, or if they do, they simply don't care.
Strange as this may sound, this level of disconnection from the audience actually works for Om. Whether vocalist and bassist Al Cisneros is grooving like he's in another plane of existence or making bass faces like none other, or the band as a whole is standing around dramatically and nearly silently between songs, Om seems to be right at home on stage -- with home being a hypothetical place that makes even a posh venue like Doug Fir Lounge feel like a dingy basement in which friends hang out, get high, and zone out. And frankly, with the droning ferocity of the bass -- which overpowers everything, really -- it doesn't particularly matter that you're connected to Om, as people, either. What matters is being connected to the completely dominating and enveloping music which you're left simultaneously listening to and meditating to.
what do you think?
