Band:	Omnium Gatherum
Album:	Stuck Here On Snakes Way
Style:	Melodic death metal
Release date:	April 2007

01. The Snake And The Way
02. Into Sea
03. Dysnomia
04. A-Part Of God
05. Undertaker
06. Bastard-O
07. The Third Flame
08. Just Signs
09. Truth
10. Drudgery
11. In Sane World
12. Spiritual

I think I saw Omnium Gatherum live a few years back. Then again, I can't be sure of that because I only vaguely remember the encounter. Now that does not mean that they suck, quite the opposite - Omnium Gatherum seem to have the whole rock-your-socks thing down pretty well. This means I was either a bit too intoxicated to remember them or for some reason I skipped their gig. I'm actually going to split my brain in two here. While the right side is busy describing their latest offspring, the left hemisphere is tasked to recall anything from the possible encounter with Omnium Gatherum's live forces.

From the first riffs of the album I thought "Suomi Metal would be a darn accurate description". And I'm going to stick to this statement. When you break Omnium Gatherum down you get particles of Death Metal mixed with some faster Heavy/Power Metal. Memories of Children Of Bodom and older Nightwish emerge. The keyboards, while relatively scarce, deserve special recognition as being simply superb. Same goes for the occasional (and very exhilarating) heavy guitar licks. Omnium Gatherum manages to mix all those ingredients with skill and present something that doesn't smell like a twenty year old rat corpse. "Stuck Here On Snakes Way" sounds quite modern, and that is not only due to the neat production.

I also must admit the album doesn't come without flaws. At some points it tends to get a bit boring. But I can't say that their songs are two-dimensional, the structures are quite complex. Maybe it's just that Omnium Gatherum are nothing too refreshing. They're in no way generic, but from time to time the album allows me to drift in and out. For example the track "In Sane World" started off with a typical speed metal lashing, then transformed to this brilliant Power/Thrash melody, then to some rather groovy riffing. As you can see, lots of positive stuff on this CD, but the variety of different styles can be tiring. These issues aside, the album offers truly great moments for those who dream of riding a white unicorn amongst the stars as well as for those who'd rather just mosh.

And what has my dark side of the brain managed to dig up? Judging by the vast void and echoing silence - not much. Oh well, I'm too tired to call for the Internet to aid me with the live-experience enigma but one thing's for sure - the next time Omnium Gatherum swing by, I'll definitely be there.