I love doom metal. I am quite the sucker for the style, never really contemplated why but the quick guess would be ‘cause I got Finn blood in me – and they tend to have a little melancholy running through them. Anyway, enough with the self revelation...

France’s Ommatidia play doom metal. We are not talking death or suicidal death doom, we’re talking doom in the vein of "Draconian Times" era Paradise Lost, early Katatonia, and "Sin/Pecado" era Moonspell. Half of the band were in Old Dead Tree (guitarist Nicholas Chevrollier and bassist Vincent Danhier), a fairly excellent doom band, which gives me hope given this pedigree. If I recall, Old Dead tree formed after one of the band’s friends or member (can’t recall which) committed suicide and they reformed to honor him. Their first release was an excellent example of some grief inspired tunes.

Back to Ommatidia, in some respects, they are a breath of fresh air. They truly carry on where Draconian Times left off, with some advances in the sound. I have found that some of the newer doom metal acts try to copy their idols too closely and don’t pull it off very well. Ommatidia don’t fall into this trap. I hear a sonic window of difference that will distinguish them from the elder doom statesmen, Paradise Lost.

The downside is that some areas of their sound happens to be a little too repetitive. To put this in proper perspective, this is the same argument I have for some of Paradise Lost’s material at times so take this criticism from that perspective. If you are familiar with another new doom act, The Foreshadowing, Ommatidia will strike you as having the same atmosphere in their sound. I think of it this way, Ommatidia is to The Foreshadowing as Paradise Lost is to My Dying Bride. Best tracks: ‘Disclosure’, ‘Senses Commotion’, and ‘Serendipity’.