Austrian Death Machine - Double Brutal Album Review

Artist: Austrian Death Machine
Album: Double Brutal
If you cant tell by the title and cover art, Austrian Death Machine is a party thrash/death metal band whose songs and lyrics are all about the man, the myth, the legend, the governator, Mr. Arnold Schwarzeneggar. I really dug thier first album Total Brutal. It wasnt the most mind blowing technical metal but it was a lot of fun to listen to. Now the boys are back with a double album of more party mayhem. The first half is more original material inspired by the movies of Arnie and the second album is a cover album featuring covers of Metallica, Megadeth, Misfits and more. The music is pretty much old thrash in the vein of like Exodus and early Suicidal Tendenecies. There are skits scattered throughout the album that get tiresome after one listen but fortunately there are still 17 tunes all together. If you liked their first album then you will like this. But if you have never heard of them and are a fan of thrash and Arnold then its definitely worth a listen. Its actually one of the better thrash albums of the year. Stand out cuts include: I Need Your Clothes, Your Boots, and Your Motorcycle (from T2), Let Off Some Steam Bennett (from Commando), See You At The Party Richter (from Total Recall), and Trapped Under Ice (Metallica cover).
Final Rating: 7.5/10

Susperia Attitude Album Review

Artist: Susperia

Album: Attitude

Available now on cd

Ive been a fan since their debut album Predominance back in 2001. Their last album Cut From Stone , actually made it into my top 10 metal albums of 2007. Now the group is back with their latest effort Attitude which is a bit simpler musically but still as awesome as ever. While the strongest cuts arent quite as strong as Cut From Stone as a whole it may be a more consistent album. For those who arent familiar with the band, they are comprised of former members of Dimmu Borgir, Old Mans Child and Satyricon. The style is basically thrash/power metal that is still heavy but has a commercial appeal to it. Some of their stuff is akin to what you would find on some of the older Testament albums but still with a modern flair to it. Fans of Testament, Nevermore and similar bands I think would really dig it.

Rating: 8.5


Songs
Live my dream


The Urge


Another Turn

Woe of Tyrants - Kingdom of Might Review

Artist: Woe of Tyrants

Album: Kingdom of Might

Style: thrash/power metal/death vocals

Available now on cd (2009)

Im still recovering from the flying roundhouse kick straight to the nuts this album gave me. I missed their debut album Behold the Lion back in 2007 so I was pleasantly surprised to hear this album. The best way I would describe their music is if Amon Amarth, Demons and Wizards, and Shadows Fall all had an orgy, then this would be their bastard offspring. The production and musicianship is all top notch. Great riffs, blazin solos, insane drumming and better than average vocals. The only real fault I could find is I wish they had a little bit catchier choruses to help distinguish the songs a little more from each other. Still overall its easily one of the better albums ive heard this year. If you are a fan of this style or any of the above bands then I highly recommend it.

Rating: 8.7

Hatebreed - For the Lions Review

Artist: Hatebreed

Album: For the Lions

Available now on cd

Ill be right up front Im not a fan at all of Hatebreed. I dont really like that style of hardcore metal and I think most of there stuff sounds the same. Having said that I love cover albums so I was really intrigued to check this out. I give them props. I enjoyed the hell out of this album. Im not a huge fan of old school hardcore/punk but I thought they did a great job covering those songs. My favorite track on the album is their cover of Metallica's Escape. I know Metallica is covered to death but I thought they brought a good modern intensity to the song which I probably liked even more than the original. Other stand out cuts are covers of Slayer's - Ghosts of War, Obituary's - I'm In Pain, and Merauder's - Life Is Pain. There are a few throw away cuts but most of the album is enjoyable. Allright guys lets hope yall learned something from these bands and make a better original album in the future.

Rating: 8.0

Ghosts of War

Escape

Metal Review

Zao - Awake

Artist: Zao

Album: Awake

Available now on cd

Zao is one of my current favorite metal bands so I was pretty pumped to see they had a new release. For those who arent familiar with the band Zao is one of the early founders of metalcore style of music. They started off as a Christian band and now they are now just more of a lyrically positve band. This morning I finished my personal mandatory policy of listening to an album at least 3 times before writing a review. Initially I was slightly disappointed, but it didnt get better with repeat listens. Dont get me wrong they are still better than 80% of other metalcore bands out there, but this album just doesnt stand up to their own standards. I absolutely love their last two albums The Fear is What Keeps Us Here and The Funeral of God but this album is nowhere as close to being as good as them. The main problem I had were the clean vocals and emo type riffs. There was just too much of this instead of just kick ass riffs and intense vocals. Also the riffs werent as solid either. I enjoyed some of it but there just wasnt enough original to keep me satisfied.

Rating: 7.0

Earbuds

Over the past few years Ive probably worn out close to two dozen earbud headsets. I listen to podcasts, music and watch movies on Ipod constantly so I need a good quality pair. Since I go through so many I never buy any high end ones that are over 25 bucks. Im sure there are some awesome ones in that range but this post Ill focus on ones that are cheaper than that. Besides the usual sources Target, Walmart, etc...you can also find good pairs at Big Lots and Ross.

Category 1 No fucking Way

1. Sentry headphones. These are the most common found at Big Lots and sometimes Ross. They are terrible sound quality. I wouldnt give these to my enemy.

2. Dollar store headphones. Do I really need to say more?

3. Phillips Surround Sound Headphones. These are actually one of the better sounding earbuds but unless your ear holes are the size of a giant WWE wrestler then stay away. My ears hurt for hours after I wore these. I was hoping my ears would get used to them but they never did. 20 minutes max is all I could take at one time. Not worth it.

Category 2 Ok until you find better

Most of these headphones are the ones you find at the store in the 10-15 dollar range.

1. Most coby headphones. They arent A grade but probably worth the money. You can often find them in the $5 dollar range.

2. Jvc Gummy- average

3. Phillips earbud noise cancelling. They are kinda bulky, dorky looking and the bass is a little lacking. You can find these on clearance a lot. Not bad for the price.

4. Basically any brand Sony, phillips, jwin, etc...that are just called earphones and no specific brand name.

Category 3 The best for the money so far

1. I hate to admit it cuz I hate thefact they seem to be marketed to goth or skater kids, but Skullcandy Inkd buds are easily the best i found so far. They are excellent quality (treble and bass) and very comfortable. They are about 16 bucks at Target but can be found for about 8 bucks at Ross.

2. Koss inline ear buds. Im a huge fan of inline audio cuz i hate going into the ipod to switch the volume up and down. These are some of the best quality by far. They are about 25 bucks at walmart.

Believer - Gabriel Album Review
Artist: Believer
Album: Gabriel
Available on 03/17/2009
For those not familiar with Believer, here's a brief history on the band. In the early 90's there was a plethora of awesome Christian thrash, death, speed metal bands. In this group were awesome bands such as Deliverance, Vengeance Rising, The Crucified, Tourniquet, Mortification, and Believer among others. Out of all of those, Believer was the only one that was given any mainstream recognition. (Recently Tourniquet has been given props) Their first album: Extraction from Mortality was raw and unflinching but the production values were a little lacking. Still some of their best material is on that album. Their second album was a huge step up in production values and continued their trend for progressive thrash metal with odd time signatures and disynchropated chords and notes. Their third album Dimensions was ground breaking in several different ways. First off it was one of the first albums ever (metal or not) that was totally 100% digitally recorded. The sound production on this album is phenomenal. They are also one of the first metal bands to incorporate opera and classical music with hardcore metal music. Now every other metal band and their dog does it. Their trilogy of knowledge metal/classical songs at the end of the album still stands up with anything like it, still to this day. When they broke up 15+ years ago i was bummed that I would never get to hear from them again. Lo and behold a few months ago I heard they were back together recording a new album. Part of me was happy and part of me was worried that they still didnt have it after all this time. Last night I got to hear the album for the first time. I wanted to post a review last night but I have a strict rule for reviewing albums for the site. I have to listen to any album I review a minimum of 3 times before posting my thoughts. Since then im probably on my 6th or 7th go around. Im happily writing the following track by track review.
1. Medwton - First thing I notice is Kurt sounds younger than he did 15 years ago. I like the vocals they are a little crisper than the old stuff. Great lead off track. Great speed metal riffs along with some great slower riffs mixed in. Rating: 9.25
2. A Moment in Prime - cool intro riff. Reminds me a lot of a track that would have been on the Dimensions album. Great mixture of clean and distorted guitars with keyboards layered in. One of the more progressive songs on the album. Has the unique Believer stamp all over it. Rating: 9.5
3. Stoned - First listen I thought the song was just ok. It has grown on me immensely and probably one of my favorite songs. Awesome verse guitar riffs with cool keyboards sounds and notes. Another signature type song from the band. Rating: 9.5
4. Redshift - Very cool midtempo song with cool bass lines. I love the chorus vocals mixed with the keyboard sounds. Cool slow jazzy type breakdown in middle. Rating: 9.0
5. History of Decline - Strange hypnotic type song w/ a cool horror movieish keyboard riff. Rating: 9.0
6. The Need For Conflict - Pretty cool speed metal song. It would make a good mosh pit song. Cool build up hardcore type vocals at the end of the song. One of the weaker tracks but still cool. Rating: 8.75
7. Focused Lethality - Awesome slayerish type intro. Fast, heavy and kick ass. Awesome speed metal breakdown in the middle. Kick ass freaky leads. One of the best tracks. Rating: 9.75
8. Shut Out The Sun - I hated this track at first but it quickly grew on me. Probably the most accessible of all the songs on the album. The central riff of the song is a simple fist pumping riff that kicks ass. Rating: 8.75
9. The Brave - (featuring Howard Jones of Killswitch Engage) The growling vocal trade off between the two singers is cool but the clean vocals by Howard is kinda weak. My least favorite song on the album. Some of the music though is pretty bitchin. Rating: 8.0
10. Nonsense mediated Decay - Great title for this song. This is where you hit the restart cd button. Tracks 10-13 are just noise nonsense. I like the spoked word story though. Rating: 5.0
Overall this is a great comeback album by the masters of technical thrash metal. This along with the new Kreator album are easily my favorite albums of the year so far. You know a band has an awesome catalog when this is my least favorite album of theirs so far. What are you waiting for. Go get this album. Final Rating: 9.2

Believer watch
Only one more day till my most anticipated metal album of the year comes out: Believer - Gabriel. Heres two tracks from their myspace profile. The first song Stoned is pretty cool but the second song that plays Focused Lethality is bitchin.

Kreator - Hordes of Chaos Video High Quality Version
Brand new video from my favorite metal album of 2009 so far.

Lamb of God - Wrath Album Review
Artist: Lamb of God
Album: Wrath
Release date feb 24, 2009
Ive never been a huge fan of Lamb of God. Ive enjoyed some of their songs but I always thought they were a little overrated. They always sounded a little too raw and repititive for my tastes. So I was pleasantly surprised to see how much I enjoyed this album. They have grown leaps and bounds since their debut album. Some people may complain about the "commercialization" of the album but I think its a welcome addition. This album has a little more groove metal style in the vein of Pantera, than their other albums. The vocals in the mix are very up front and in your face which I liked. Still my only complaint I have is for this thrash/death/groove metal hybrid type of music, I still prefer more leads. Only one song has a solo in it. I still have a strong feeling this album will continue to grow their popularity, but maybe hardcore fans might have backlash for their more accessible sound. Fuck them, I still dig the new sound.
Rating: 8.2
In Your Words

Cover song
I love cover songs especially when done right. Holy Shit here's one of the best Iron Maiden covers Ive ever heard without trying to be a copy of the original.

Hallowed Be Thy Name

Kreator - Hordes of Chaos Album Review

Artist: Kreator

Album: Hordes of Chaos

Released on January 13, 2009

The first must have metal album of 2009. I really enjoyed their last album Enemy of God but this one takes it up a whole other notch. For those who arent familiar with Kreator they were one of the best thrash metal bands of the 80's and early 90's. Then later they fell off the wagon with a few shitty experimental albums. Now they are back full force with kick ass rhythms, blazing leads and raw but awesome vocals. This album has a very Slayeresque feel to it. I like when bands have ultra produced slick albums from time to time but I also like when it has an organic live feel to it like this album. The only negative I would say is the run time is a fast 38 minutes! I wanted more, more, more! If you are a thrash/speed metal fan then dont even finish this sentence and go get this album now.
Rating: 9.0 out of 10.

Necrologue for the Elite

Ayreon - The Human Equation Music Review
Artist: Ayreon
Album: The Human Equation
Avalable now on cd.
What do you get when you mix acoustic and metal guitars, flutes, violins, synthesizers, medieval music and some of the best voices on the planet together? You get a bizarre, epic, masterpiece of an album. I dont even know how to classify this album. The album is mainly slow, atmospheric music with some progressive music sprinkled throughout. It is definitely not for everyone. I cant easily see someone just plain hating this album saying it is self indulgent, cheesy music that's not relevant to today. The album is so different thats why I absolutely love it. This is not an album that you drive around blasting, but an album to sit back, relax, close your eyes and let the vocals and music wash over you.
Ayreon is a band thats a creation by Dutch Multi-instrumentalist and composer, Arjen Anthony Lucassen. Basically he writes the music and gets guest vocalists and players to record the album.
The real draw to this album is the terrific vocals. James LaBrie (Dream Theater), Mikael Akerfeld, Devin Townsend, Devon Graves (Dead Soul Tribe), Irene Jansen (Star One), Magnus Ekwall (The Quill) , Heather Findlay (Mostly Autumn) and the one of the best vocalists on the planet Eric Clayton from Saviour Machine.
One of the best symphonic, progressive, epic rock albums ive ever heard. If you are a fan of this type of music or Kansas, David Bowie, Pink Floyd, Saviour Machine, Dream Theater then this will be right up your alley. It is a 2 cd set with over 2 hrs of music.
Rating: 9.6 out of 10.

Metal Reviews for Warrel Dane and Jeff Loomis
I fucking love when great metal bands branch off and do solo projects. Majority of the time the projects end up being almost as cool as their original band. Well last year the consistently good metal/thrash band Nevermore had two members do solo albums. Both albums were very solid and very different from Nevermore. First up is the vocalist of Nevermore, Warrel Dane.

Artist: Warrel Dane
Album: Praises to the War Machine
Available now on cd
Very solid debut album. The music is a bit slower than Nevermore, I would call it more of a grand power metal style. The emphasis is definitely more on his vocals than the music itself. The music is top notch also but the song structure is really made to emphasize the choruses and Warrel's vocals. Ive only heard it a few times but its slowly growing on me.

Artist: Jeff Loomis
Album: Zero Order Phase
Available now on cd
Mother fuck son of a bitch! What a kick ass album! This is a shred album of the highest order. I havent heard a great instrumental guitar album in ages. The rhythms are razor sharp and the leads are blazing. Very heavy instrumental album in the same vein as James Murphy solo albums. There are also some great clean guitar parts, quiet moments and a cool bass interlude in one song. Overall as a package its a kick ass album. If I would have heard this last year it would have easily been in my top 10 of the year. For fans of instrumental guitar (shred) albums then this is a must buy.

Rating: Warrel Dane- 8.0
Rating: Jeff Loomis- 9.2

Jeff Loomis - Opulent Maelstrom


Warrel Dane - Brother

Amon Amarth Twilight of the Gods Cd Review
Artist: Amon Amarth
Album: Twilight of the Gods

Available now on cd

Im kicking myself for never listening to this band before now. I guess Ive always assumed it was some death metal generic bullshit. This band is far from that. Yeah the vocals are death metal but the music is straight up classic metal with some power/thrash influence. In other words it kicks ass. The choruses are catchy, the leads smoking, and just an all around solid album. If you are a fan of Hammerfall, Iron Maiden, Iced Earth or other similar types of music then I highly suggest checking it out. Just beware that it has death growling vocals. Now it looks like I'll be making my way back through their back catalog. On a scale of 1-10 I give this a 8.8 out of 10.

Trailer for Title Track

Guns N' Roses - Chinese Democracy Review
Availble only at Best Buy on 10/23/2008
I remember a time when Gnr ruled the musical world. Appetite for Destruction was a monster hit and Use Your Illusions 1 and 2 were friggin awesome. Seems like forever ago. Now after a rumored 13 million dollars and 6 years in the making their new album is out. Some could argue its truly not GnR without Slash in the line up. Instead the album features leads by Buckethead and Bumblefoot and rhythms by other guitarists. The good news is that Axl's vocals still sound as good as ever. It does seem like he goes into his deeper register more than previous albums. The guitars are more modern metal/rock then Slash's southern hard rock/metal sound. Heres my quick thoughts on all the tracks.

Track 1- Chinese Democracy- One of the harder rocking tunes on the album. Good selection to start the album. After a long boring intro the groove kicks in and ends up being pretty cool. Cool new school Tom Morello sounding solo. Rating: 7.5

Track 2- Shackler's Revenge- One of the better tracks. Very much Linkin Park/Hed Pe type of riffs and vibe. Cool solo and catchy choruses. Rating: 8.5

Track 3- Better- Mid tempo rocker that gets heavy during the choruses. Very catchy tune. Another great solo and another solid tune. Good use of electronic drums and sounds. Rating 9.0

Track 4- Street of Dreams- a rock piano ballad. Very strange low and high alternating verses singing. In the middle is some cool string accompaniment. Another cool solo. A solid track. Rating 7.5

Track 5- If The World- Awesome egyptian sounding opening with funky beats and strings. Very weird track but I dig it. Another mid tempo ballad that I dont think most people would like. Rating: 8.0

Track 6- There Was A Time- Another mid tempo rocker. Not a big fan of the song. Not terrible but not really any good. Rating:6.0

Track 7- Catcher In The Rye- a southern rock country type of ballad. Hit the skip button. Rating:4.0

Track 8- Scraped- Finally another rocker mixed in with the other ballads. Pretty catchy, I likey. Rating: 8.0

Track 9- Riad N' The Bedouins- Song is as crappy as the name of the song. Good solo makes it from being totally worthless. Rating: 5.0

Track 10- Sorry- Awesome ballad. One of the best tracks on the album. Awesome bluesy solo. Reminiscent of Pink Floyd. Rating: 9.0

Track 11- I.R.S.- Reminds me too much of Aerosmiths "Dream On". Boring song, boring solo. Rating: 6.5

Track 12- Madagascar- starts off with a cool laid back beat but in the middle gets bogged down by a long boring session with MLk and others talking. Totally ruins the song. Rating: 5.0

Track 13- This Love- an orchestral piano ballad. Awesome piercing guitar solo. Probably overall my favorite track. Rating: 9.5

Track 14- Prostitute- Average rocker with some more cool leads. Rating: 7.0

While not the epic album I was hoping for its still a solid rock album nonetheless. It does feature a cool assortment of different styles and electronic sounds which added to the album. There are a few duds but most of the songs are cool. Overall Rating: 7.5

Metallica - Death Magnetic Review

Artist: Metallica

Album: Death Magnetic

Availibility: cd releases on September 12, 2008.

Every time Metallica announces a new album I always get excited. They always promise that they will go back to their old style and then everytime I finally listen to it Im ultimately disappointed. I can say without a doubt this is definitely better than Load, Reload, and

St. Anger. Its definitely growing on me with each listen. The best I can sum it up is the speed metal style of Kill Em All/Ride the Lightning mixed with bluesy riffs of Load. After the St. Anger album Im just happy they are back to guitar solos.

Track 1: That Was Just Your Life- (7:08) Awesome opening track. Old school speed metal with a tinge of punk.

Track 2: The End Of The Line- (7:51) Pearl Jamish speed metal song. Great headbanging song. One of my favorites.

Track 3: Broken, Beat and Scarred- (6:25) Fast mosh pit song. Third awesome song in a row.

Track 4: The Day That Never Comes- (7:55) Overall my least favorite song.

Track 5: All Nightmare Long- (7:57) Super fast speed metal riffing. Probably my favorite song of the lot. Kick ass solo also.

Track 6: Cyanide- (6:39) A bluesy metal song. It also has a classic metal influence like something Ozzy would do. Its ok.

Track 7: The Unforgiven III- (7:46) Its an ok ballad. My least favorite of all the Unforgiven songs.

Track 8: The Judas Kiss- (8:00) Pretty cool bluesy tinged groove metal song. Some of the best leads on the album.
Track 9: Suicide and Redemption- (9:56) Heavy instrumental song. Great slow middle breakdown. Awesome solos. Great fucking song.
Track 10: My Apocalypse- (5:01) Cool old school style song. One of the best songs on the album.
To sum up I dont think they will ever return to the magical glory years of Master of Puppets or And Justice For All, but this is definitely a huge step in that direction. 7 awesome tracks and 3 throwaways (4,6, and 7). Its a worthy addition to their catalog. While they cant even begin to sniff the nutsack of the Testament masterpiece Formation of Damnation, this is at the top of my list for best speed metal albums of the year. Plastic guitars and Guitar Hero game lovers all of the world will be happy in a few weeks.
Rating: 8.7

Song All Nightmare Long

Mosh It Up Baby
Metal Review
Artist: Austrian Death Machine
Album: Total Brutal
Availability: Out now on cd
This is a tribute band to no other than the Governator himself Mr. Schwartzeneggar. Pet project of Tim Lambesis of As I Lay Dying. Every song is themed after an Arnold movie or a famous line that he has quoted. Not only is the album pretty funny, but they are also a pretty good metal band. The vocals, when not doing an Arnold impersonation, is of the hardcore hollering type and the music is solid, fun old school thrash metal. The album kicks off in high gear with the song "Get to the Choppa" and ends on a high note with "It's Not a Tumor". Other funny song titles include "I Am A Cybernetic Organism", "You Have Just Been Erased" and one of my favorite tracks, the Predator influenced "If It Bleeds, We Can Kill It". That track has Dutch and the Predator singing back and forth to each other. Here are some of the lyrics:
Predator:
This is my planet now
I'm here to hunt your kind
This is a game to me
You'll all be dead in time
Must I remind you that I have killed your friends
Must I remind you that your life is at it's end

Dutch:
I once was the hunted, but now your time is through
The tides have turned, and now I'm hunting you
If it bleeds, we can kill it

The album is just plain fun with some good thrash riffs, solos and cool sing along background vocals. Definitely recommended for some light hearted metal to bang your head to.
Rating: 7.3

Fan Made video for "IF it Bleeds You Can Kill It"

Mosh It Up Baby

Artist: Hammerfall

Album: Masterpieces

Availability: out July 22, on cd.

I love cover albums. You either get to hear a band you like do their take on a cool song, or in a lot of cases you get to hear new cool songs that you might not have ever heard before. Im a Hammerfall nut and I used to buy all their singles so I have heard two of the songs on the album, Dio's: Man on the Silver Mountain and Helloween's: I Want Out, which are both kick ass. Other highlights include Accept's - 'Head over Heels and Riot's - 'Flight of the Warrior'. There are a few duds but over a solid album. If you are a hardcore Hammerfall fan then its a no brainer for everyone else check out at least those 4 songs.

Rating: 7.7

Mosh It Up Baby!
Artist:Dragonforce
Album: Ultra Beatdown
Release Date Auguest 26
Ive only heard the album twice so far but I would put it almost on par with Inhuman Rampage. If you are not already a Dragonforce fan then this sure wont win you over. They still have the trademark speed rhythms, blazing solos, and the piercing lead and background vocals. That might be their ultimate problem that they dont have enough variety in their music. On this album track #4 Heartbreak Armageddon has a clean section that stands out, and I wish they had more stuff like that on the album. The album starts off jamming with their lead off single Heroes of Our Time and ends on a high note with The Warrior Inside. Another solid track and one of my favorites is track #7 Inside the Winter Storm with awesome breakdown sections that had me grooving. While the album is not quite an "ultimate beatdown" to this genre it is still solid and a must buy for any fans out there.
Rating: 8.2

Heroes of our Time



Artist: Soulfly
Album: Conquer
Release Date July 29
Fucking Awesome. Guitarist/vocalist Max Cavalera and Mark Rizzo have done it again. They teamed up earlier this year with one of my favorite releases, The Cavalera Conspiracy's Inflikted album, which is my second most listened to album of the year, only behind the Testament masterpiece. When Soulfly first started, their first few albums was more of the tribal groove bullshit that Max started on the way fucking overrated Sepultura's Roots album. Not to mention they had a bunch of poseur nu metal vocalists guest starring. Finally some sense (and probably the arrival of Mark Rizzo) has been smacked back into Max and he's back making some kick ass music. This album is back to old school thrash groove similar to old Sepultura and some new groove metal music very similar to The Cavalera Conspiracy. On several tracks there are guest vocalist that have never sounded better. Also add in some kick ass leads and some unique heavy breakdowns and you have another must acquire metal album. I think the album is going to grow on me much like their C.C. Inflikted album has. My favorite track on the album, the very Mortificationesque Fall of the Cycophants had me grinning ear from ear reminiscing about the early days of kick ass speed metal.
Rating: 8.8
New video Unleash

Fall of the Cycophants song