Orden Ogan – Final Days

Orden Ogan
Final Days
AFM Records
March 12, 2021
50:39

After the outstanding album “Gunmen” (2017), a lot has happened in the Orden Ogan camp. Guitarist Tobiias Kersting has left the band for private reasons and is now taking a break. A suitable replacement was quickly found in Patrick Sperling. And because of a hand injury, mastermind Seeb Levermann was only on stage as a singer. Bassist Nils Löffler took over the part on the second guitar. The new man on the bass is now Steven Wussow (ex-Xandria). This worked so well that this temporary solution became a permanent one. Well, and then Corona came along. This made the production of the album and the corresponding video clips more difficult and delayed. But now it’s here, album number six “Final Days”. The tour for the album has been postponed from September 2020 to February March 2022.

After creating a Dark Wild West scenery for “Gunmen” and having storylines about monasteries in moorlands (“Ravenhead”), apocalyptic ice worlds (“To The End”) and burning cities (“Easton Hope”), all that remained was the way into space.

This is how mastermind Seeb Levermann describes the new album, with a wink of course. The opener “Heart Of The Android” already shows that he is serious about this topic. Here the listener is taken into dark sci-fi worlds. Of course, everything is packed in the usual Orden Ogan sound, with banging riffs, epic choruses and the, as always, outstanding vocals of the band leader. “In The Dawn Of The AI” then goes one better, with very good, thrilling riffs, double bass attacks and a chorus that almost invites you to sing along. And all that at extremely high speed. Unlike the title “Inferno” suggests, the people from Sauerland show their airplay skills here. A song with a very strong pop edge. But without slipping into the trivial. “Let The Fire Rain” could have been on their previous album with its anthemic sound and the backing vocals. On “Interstellar” a third guitarist joins the crowd, Gus G. (Firwind, ex-Ozzy Osbourne). He delivers a great solo here.

After Liv Kristine refined a song on “Gunmen” (on “Come With Me To The Other Side”), Seeb has also got female support from Scandinavia this time. Ylva Eriksson from the Swedish Power Metallers Brothers of Metal is the vocal partner on the beautiful ballad “Alone In The Dark”. Heartbreakingly beautiful!  On the other hand, “Black Hole” once again blasts out of the speakers in typical Orden Ogan manner. Do I have to mention the sing-along choruses again? Yes, even if I repeat myself, but these are a trademark of the band. And of course, the work of the guitar duo. The playfully arranged “Absolution For Our Final Days” is no exception. On “Hollow”, the musicians try to break speed records again, in the best Blind Guardian tradition. The double bass is the main driving force here, and the guitars easily keep up. With “It Is Over”, the longest track on the disc, Orden Ogan draw an absolutely epic final line. Even if the story ends sadly with the impact of a huge meteorite.

With “Final Days”, Orden Ogan have topped their outstanding “Gunmen” once again. The newly formed guitar duo Löffler/Sperling did their job brilliantly. Seeb Levermann, freed from all instrumental burdens, is in top form vocally. New bassist Steven Wussow provides solid deep tones and drummer Dirk Meyer-Berhorn whips his comrades-in-arms forward again and again. Now the all-important question arises: what happens after the end of the world? Will new, intelligent life develop in the depths of the oceans?

Orden Ogan – Inferno ((Official Music Video): https://youtu.be/CNOgBVF17HA

Lineup:

Seeb Levermann – Vocals
Nils Löffler – Guitar
Patrick Sperling – Guitar
Steven Wussow – Bass
Dirk Meyer-Berhorn – Drums

Track list:

• Heart Of The Android
• In The Dawn Of The AI
• Inferno
• Let The Fire Rain
• Interstellar (Feat. Gus G.)
• Alone In The Dark (Feat. Ylva Eriksson)
• Black Hole
• Absolution For Our Final Days
• Hollow
• It Is Over