Oni – Genesis Pt. II
Oni – Genesis Pt. II
Self-Released
Release Date: 01/08/2025
Review by Beth Morait
7/10
Canada seems to have a habit of producing some epic Metal musicians. It’s a place I’ve always wanted to visit, and listening to some of the music that comes out of the country only makes me want to fulfil this ambition more! And today for my listening pleasure, Canada has produced again! Oni is the solo project of Canadian vocalist, Jake Oni. He creates Alt Metalcore, and this is the second chapter of a body of work he’s been creating this year, with “Genesis Pt. I” being released back in January.
The first thing that strikes me about the sound on offer here is it’s a great melding of Linkin Park, Killswitch, and Korn, which is totally up my street! Starting out very melodic, ‘What I’ve Become’ opens the mini-album. And it’s instant melancholy. Clean vocals throughout the main verses and choruses take the lead. And they’re nice, however I am in no way a fan of the amount of autotune on them. Jake obviously has a good voice, so why autotune it within an inch of its life? That aside, it’s a solid opener where we also get a taste of Jake’s more Metalcore growls. Musically, it’s expansive and Progressive, with a Djent edge to the guitars.
‘Drug Me To Sleep’ starts out with elements of Industrial Metal, with heavy riffs and metallic rhythms. The hideous autotune isn’t as prominent here either, which is welcome, and shows that indeed Jake does have a lovely pure voice with just enough grit to help it tip into Metalcore. This is a heavier offering than the first track, but still Melodic.
However, if you want more of a throwback to 90s Korn, then ‘Reset’ is the track for you. It begins with a spikey Metalcore riff, and then incomes Jake doing his best impression of Johnathan Davis. The chorus does still have clean vocals, but this is essential a track that wouldn’t been out of place on Korn’s self-titled debut album.
‘Illumination’ takes us in another direction, following a more Progressive path, with a complex time signature and cross rhythms aplenty. I think this is my favourite track on the album, just for its more exploratory feel. The ambient sounds also feel bigger on this track, giving it an anthemic presence. It’s quite Leprous-esque, as is the following track ‘Float’. Again this is no problem for me, as I adore Leprous, and Einer Solberg’s vocals are on my G.O.A.T list in terms of quality. Jake Oni has a similar tone in his voice to Einar, and this best seen on these two tracks.
The album comes to a close with ‘Retribution’ and the opening of this track feels a lot punchier and angrier than the rest of the album. It’s got a hell of a groovy riff not to far into the track, but it doesn’t hang around for long, which is a shame. Again, this track has a more Progressive edge, and a neat little guitar solo towards the end, but the Metalcore growls are really the driver here.
This is a pretty decent album. It’s not groundbreaking, but it’s a good listen and will be enjoyed by anyone who likes any of the aforementioned bands. Aside from the autotune, the other thing that stuck me with the whole of the album is it’s predominantly in one key, which makes each track sound a little samey. I think some variety would make a big difference.
TRACKLISTING:
01. What I’ve Become
02. Drug Met To Sleep
03. Reset
04. Illumination
05. Float
06. Retribution
LINKS:
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