Album Review: Orbstruct - Ostracism
Reviewed by Sam Jones
According to Google, Ostracism is described as the deliberate, neglectful method of excluding someone from a social group, resulting in psychological and self-esteem harm; it is this idea with which Ukrainian death metal act Orbstruct have so dubbed their third full length album. Formed in 2016 originally out of the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, the band’s first album Phobos Rising released in 2019, whereupon they recorded and dropped a follow-up, Deimos Falling, in 2021. However, due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 Orbstruct like many Ukrainian bands needed to depart the country, thus bringing the band to Silesia, Poland. With this third studio album prepped for release I’m curious what emotions the band have thrown into this opus and given the recent history of Ukraine I’m convinced it’s no fluke, given the meaning, why this work was named Ostracism. Set to release October 3rd through Paragon Records, I can imagine many longtime fans are more than curious to see what kind of band Orbstruct are after everything that has happened.
As one gets the record underway you’ll perhaps be taken aback at the amazing clarity Orbstruct have rendered towards their drums. Its evident the band have applied a strong polish to their production which creates this overall well-executed and thus nicely-sounding album where nothing needs yearning for because the band give it us clearly. Its why when bass drums come at us thick and fast they’re delivered with a clenched fist and every kick going into them feels strong. The very truth that the kick drums aren’t being delivered at breakneck speed lets us feel them all the more because the band are giving us time to feel their weight, they aren’t just letting the kick drums pass over us, they’re passing through us. The same is applied to the cymbals and tom-toms for even during their most ferocious periods, the bands’ drums are coherent and easy to hear and follow along to. The band may bring the power but they’ve seen to it that very power isn’t accidentally diluted by the enthusiasm they’re collectively pouring into their songwriting.
It strikes me how I have never encountered Orbstruct before as their death metal attack is the very kind i adore. Their riffs are fast, precise, integral to songwriting, but they also hit like a train without brakes; one can certainly feel the mass thrown into each riff and when coupled alongside the vocals or drums it makes for a meaty punch. But since they aren’t trying to break the sound barrier, the pacing is much more approachable for newcomers like myself. As we covered regarding the drums, the band’s ethos appears driven towards writing metal that’s ruthless yet readable at any moment. Like tracing the path upon the mountain’s climb, knowing where to place each finger and foot, Orbstruct effectively highlight at all times where the audience’s attention should be. It doesn’t matter if you get an idea where you may be taken, the fact is there is nothing your attention finds but that one path. The songwriting feels exlcusively written with deliberation in mind.
I think these vocals sound some of the most pained I've heard all year. Rather than just offering another guttural form, Orbstruct’s vocals feel like they’re having to push past some contusion in order to give these cords the strain required to replicate such a hideous performance. Against the firmly clenched impact these guys operate with, and knowing the kind of songwriting Orbstruct write, it works staggeringly well. The hard hitting vibe these guys bounce off each other with is excellently paralleled with the bass-heavy vocals, especially given how deep this delivery is too. There isn’t a chance of understanding a syllable of what’s said because its injecting the band’s instrumentation with atmosphere and tone. The riffs complement the vocals and vice versa. It's a case where the instrumentation and vocals aesthetically match each other, without the band necessarily focusing on aesthetics to begin with.
I touched upon it briefly earlier but the mix for Ostracism is sensational. Every piece of the band’s performance is in the desired position it needs to be for the next piece to thus take over, pushing the band forward, to the next formulated sequence. But more than that the mix here mirrors an orchestral conductor where, leading it all, the mix declares NOW that riff will come in and NOW the drums will initiate blast beats all the while soloing goes wild and NOW they both cease so the vocals renew their bludgeoning. I feel you could list every single section of each track, maybe every thirty seconds, and determine what will be playing at that moment and how that moment will therefore bleed into the next. As mentioned, this is a methodically written album where everything is positioned for purpose and that purpose is to feed you their songwriting as seamlessly as possible, yet Orbstruct still retain that innate power that can be lost should one perceive songwriting in an overzealously mathematical approach. I know every track on record had me headbanging away, only increasing in adoration and respect for a band who prior to this review I had never heard before. I now know Orbstruct a band to be watched.
In conclusion, Orbstruct’s Ostracism is a wondrously executed and compositioned album. Some may argue its riffs and songwriting are nothing new yet I'd say Ostracism is what happens when you get all those elements you’ve heard a hundred times over and implement them to highly competent degree. I believe the musicians who listen to this work will pour over each track and pick out each point that makes a song work or why a riff seems to hit just so much sweeter. Songwriting buffs are going to want to study this record as I feel Ostracism is primed for that closer look, dissecting every turn and development made. But aside from this intellectual standpoint, the album simply brings the crushing power home in spades yet its not so much that its impact is lessened; their songwriting may climb and descend in pacing yet you always feel like Orbstruct are always straddling the same line as they began with. Where other acts struggle with this Orbstruct have made it a key strength, providing a firm base they can play off from to deliver some head-smashing riffs and with enough bass to rearrange your molecules. On the whole Orbstruct are a delightful find and one i will be sure to return for their back catalogue. Consider me converted.
