In Case You Missed This...
I'm digging into this 2025 release because I feel it deserves a mention. It seems to have remained completely underground in Portugal, and I’d like to give it some proper attention (partly because I genuinely wanted to dig into it myself)!
Let’s start with the introductions. Orar is apparently a duo composed of “Morgue” and “Kavadas”, expanding into a quartet for live performances, at least according to the information available on Metallum. Formed in 2025 in Leiria, Portugal, the band released their debut LP in the same year through Repulsive Echo Records, on CD (a copy of which I proudly own).
Shooting Your Soul With Cosmic Blood consists of six tracks, clocking in at just over 30 minutes. With its raw production paying tribute to the genre’s origins, the album has several details that make it stand out.
A very competent female vocalist gives the record some extra muscle, while the music moves between moments of pure black metal, melodic black metal and even some classic heavy metal vibes. None of the musicians are particularly groundbreaking or reinventing the wheel here, but they fit together very well as a whole, delivering solid and enjoyable music.
That said, in my opinion, the album suffers somewhat from its production. I understand the intention behind the raw, lo-fi approach, and it certainly fits the old-school spirit, but I can’t help thinking that the songs would benefit enormously from a cleaner and more defined recording. There is enough quality in the songwriting and performances to justify giving the music more room to breathe.
By the end of the album, I was left with the feeling that Shooting Your Soul With Cosmic Blood could almost be the demo for something much greater to come. And if this is indeed only the beginning, I sincerely hope Orar continue developing this sound and come back with something even stronger in the future.
For a band that appeared seemingly out of nowhere in 2025 and has remained largely under the radar in Portugal, Orar are definitely worth keeping an eye on.
No comments:
Post a Comment