In the year 2003 there was a sea of bands falling from grace, most of whose craft lay in the nu-metal scene. Durst, Bennington and Davis all saw their creations take a shift from mainstream love to popular rejection and for many it felt like their and so many others time had gone. Ten years have passed since then and now some of the old faces that were once given the musical cold shoulder are back in favour and doing better than ever.
Amongst these reappearances are One Minute Silence, a band that have been pigeonholed in the above sub-genre since they began in the early 90’s. With their rap and metal merging’s, the press did what they do best and categorised them with the others but OMS have more to offer than much of their representations suggest, a point reiterated in their latest EP, Fragmented Armageddon.
Lead by their charismatic vocalist, OMS’s newest material in ten years incorporates a range of genres from progressive metal to dubstep to the aforementioned nu-metal. Filled with lyrical fury, songs such as ‘Fruit From The Lie’ and ‘You So Much As Move’ take the slow building approach before unleashing into their guitar fuelled bursts of rage, with the former throwing in a slow and technical breakdown in-between for good measure.
‘Paranoid Schizophrenia’ disregards this tactic, leading the assault head first with heavy hitting drumbeats and Yap’s anti-establishment cries wailing over the top, making for a compelling and thought-provoking listening. Final track ‘Early Morning’ however is a completely different brand of kettle that sees Yap crooning along to an acoustic number of very un-heavy and rather droning proportions that does not fit with the EP’s previous material.
Then come the stabs at re-hashing their music with electronic methods. Deeply soaked dubstep comes first in the form of ‘Fruit From The Lie (Ben Hurd Remix)’ whilst the more-subtle electronica of ‘You So Much As Move (Massimo Fiocco Remix)’ follows. Out of the two, it is the latter of which is a more enjoyable listen but both pose a risk with some of their fans that may not appreciate this method of song engineering.
OMS’s new release is a bold and brash return that may polarize their long-standing admirers, whilst also enticing new ones. In regards to the music however, it’s the tracks that remain true to their instrumental and politically charged roots that are the most exciting to hear and it’s in this direction that they will hopefully take their future releases.
6/10
Emma Quinlan