Omnium Gatherum

The Redshift album promotional teaser:

OMNIUM GATHERUM is a "melodic" death metal combo from the wastes of Finland, hailing from Karhula, the sub-urban and metal capital of Kotka.

OG produce complex but accessible death metal that incorporates elements of thrash and tradl metal without ever sounding derivate. Top quality Finnish steel, in other words. It has said also that if you mix At The Gates, Katatonia, Death and Judas Priest there's the recipe to OMNIUM GATHERUM stuff!

OMNIUM GATHERUM came into being somewhere in time in Autumn 1996. After a year of hard training and songwriting OG recorded their first demo tape "Forbidden Decay" containing atmospheric melodic death metal, in the Spring of 1997. Two self-financed releases followed: the "OG" cd-ep in 1998 and "Gardens, Templesthis Hell!" mcd in 1999. Especially "Gardens.." caused some positive stir in the metal underground, but no good record deals were offered, it was not until the fourth demo "Wastrel" was released in May 2001. The review of this demo in UK..s Terrorizer Magazine summed up what was going on: "there is a sense of something special happening here. Technically the sextet have got it all worked out, but if I could apply the word 'beautiful' to metal songs then I would do so here because they are as complete as would be expected from any top class album."

After four demos and 5 years in December 2001, a new and growing label RAGE OF ACHILLES Records from England signed OG and the band was sent straight to the Sonic Pump studios in late December to record a debut MCD Steal The Light. The mcd containing 5 songs of quality Finnish melodeath was released in September 2002. It achieved great reviews and feedback all around the world and Kerrang! Magazine even voted OG to "TOP21 bands you should hear".

In August 2002 OG entered the Sonic Pump studios again to record their first full-length album called "Spirits and August Light". The album was released in April ..03 thru Rage Of Achilles Records and the album got licensed also to Japan and to South-America.

The "Spirits and August Light" album made it again even to greater reviews than the previous ones and there has been given even some "album of the month" titles to the album (for example in Rock Hard magazine!), also being the only Finnish band ever with a debut review of 5/5 at the legendary Kerrang! Magazine. The metal media praised the band to be "A new wave" of death metal as for example Metal Hammer magazine ranked OG on their feature "A new wave of European death metal" among the bands Opeth, Haunted, In Flames, Soilwork and Red Harvest. Here's what the article said about OG: "Classically inclined operatic metal at its most snobbish. Lead breaks to make metal gods Judas Priest weep, and vocals that lift them out of any black metal pit. If Opeth are the Pink Floyd of this scene, then Omnium are likely to turn into Rush at the very least. Hammer recommends: "spirits and august light".

After the album release OG played as many gigs as possible and opened the gigs for example for such big acts as Children Of Bodom, Ensiferum and Zyklon. The band made also a music video from the song "Writhen" at spring ..03 which was later released on Nuclear Blast..s Monsters Of Metal compilation DVD..s as also the two newer OG videos.

European nr. 1 metal label Nuclear Blast signed the band after the debut album and the second album Years In Waste was released in November in Europe and the album were also licensed worldwide. The band toured among others with Dismember after the release and has played gigs in big festivals even in Germany or in Tuska Festival in Finland etc. and gigs with Cannibal Corpse, Entombed and Napalm Death. OG made also videos from new albums tracks The Fall Went Right Through Here and The Nolan..s Fati. The new album was much more progressive stuff than the previous ones and OG have set again new standards for their music. Years In Waste have again got lots of words of praise in the media and the biggest American metal magazine BW&BK stated on their 8,5/10 review that OG is one of the most underrated band of Europe and everybody should check the band out!

At the beginning of the year 2006 OG departed ways with their long-time singer Antti Filppu because of the musical / personal reasons etc. "cliché" stuff. The new singer was found right away from our friend band Elenium, and the name of the dude was Jukka Pelkonen. Jukka have given the really needed extra-boost to OG with his own presence and aggressive growling style! Straight after this line-up change the band did their first UK headlining tour which was a success.

The next step was that British Candlelight Records signed the band and released the third OG magnum opus titled "Stuck Here On Snakes Way" in April 2007. The album climbed to the official national Finnish album chart to position 31. and surprised the band and the label! After the release the band did a big number of Finnish gigs and toured also Spain and Portugal with Caliban, and did also few festivals in Finland and Germany.

Thorsten Zahn, chief editor of METAL HAMMER GERMANY: "Nobody can deny that the metal scene is thriving and blooming. Fresh new bands carry the spirit and give new impulses to the genre - or at least leave their fingerprints. One of these young and hungry bands is called Omnium Gatherum. The Finnish six-piece creates complex yet accessible death metal with traditional influences and a massive dose of thrash metal. This puts Omnium Gatherum in line with Finnish high-class metal forgers.

OMNIUM GATHERUM - Into Sea (video 2007):

OMNIUM GATHERUM - The Fall Went Right Through Here (video 2004):

OMNIUM GATHERUM - The Nolans Fati (video 2005):

OMNIUM GATHERUM - Writhen (video 2003):

OMNIUM GATHERUM - Deathwhite (liveclip video 2003):