Oceano - 'Depths'

Depths is a sonically heavy album that plays it safe and doesn’t deviate too far from the deathcore formula.

It has been a long and hard road for Oceano, with their debut album Depths coming together after multiple lineup changes and a freak accident or two. Their determination and sheer will has gotten them this far, and to their credit, Depths does have some great moments of tranquil passages and airy guitar work. It’s too bad that the majority of the music is standard, no-frills deathcore that has been done to death by countless other bands.

The quintet blazes through thirteen tracks with a level of dexterity and confidence that eludes most bands on their debut album. Oceano is a brutal band, but the production increases the heaviness factor tenfold. There are moments where the band spreads their wings creatively and experiments with clean electric guitar melodies, as evident on the instrumental title track and “Samael The Destroyer.” “With Legions...” even features an epic keyboard introduction that leads nicely into the destructive riffing.

However, the rest of the album is by-the-books deathcore. There are the forced extended breakdowns that go on for far too long, a vocalist that screams and barks excessively, and guitars that are content with sticking to the same chugging riffs over and over again. By the end of Depths, the album suffers from the same problems bands like Whitechapel and Suicide Silence fall into; repetition and lack of memorable songs.

Being as brutal as possible can be quite a feat to accomplish, but the music needs to have something for people to latch onto. Depths will appeal to fans of deathcore, but most metal fans will find it to be another carbon copy of all the other bands in the increasing-stale genre. Oceano shows signs that they have what it takes to make a name for themselves beyond the deathcore tag, a hopeful sign that Depths is only the beginning for Oceano.