Album Reviews : Widow the Sea – Novella of the Ocean

With countless new deathcore bands happy enough to re-record the same music over and over again, it’s nice to hear a group attempt to go on their own course. Don’t let their tight jeans and lack of long hair put you off, the Gold Coast’s Widow The Sea are on a mission to carve their own unique path into the extreme metal world. Produced by The Red Shore’s Roman Koester at Complex Studios, and mastered by Goran Finnberg (Opeth/Soilwork/Arch Enemy), Widow The Sea’s debut EP Novella of the Ocean is brisling with their malicious intent to create something their own.

From the start of “Prologue” to the ending of “Emergence A.D.”, every moment of the EP features technically adept playing, but also plenty of highly memorable riffs and subtle tempo changes, such as “The Nameless City” and the awesome Black Dahlia Murder-esque “The Hellbound Heart”. Frontman Colin Jeffs packs some seriously bloodcurdling shrieks, and is quite the accomplished lyricist, meanwhile the drum work from Cameron Hui drives along title track, which also features some fantastic guitars by Hui’s brother Lincoln and fellow axeman Michael Jeffery.

The only thing that possibly weighs down this release is a slight lack of variety in some of the tracks at first, but after a few spins the Novella of the Ocean really starts to make sense and proves how much of a breath of fresh air this band has the potential to be. Very impressive stuff. 8/10

Band: Widow The Sea
Album: Novella of the Ocean
Year: 2010
Genre: Death Metal/Technical Death Metal
Origin: Gold Coast, Australia
Label: Skull and Bones
www.myspace.com/widowthesea

Track listing:

1. Prologue
2. The Nameless City <-Reviewers choice
3. Novella of the Ocean
4. The Hellbound Heart
5. Genesis 6:7
6. Emergence A.D.