Technical progressive metal band ONI recently announced the release of their debut scorcher Ironshore, set to hit stores on Black Friday, November 25, 2016 via Blacklight Media/Metal Blade Records. After turning heads with their first single “Eternal Recurrence”, the band is following up with their equally-superhuman single, “Barn Burner”, which you can hear now via www.metalblade.com/oni.
With their influences rooted in progressive metal, ONI‘s sound can be compared to the genre’s heavy hitters – The Human Abstract, Protest The Hero and Between The Buried And Me – yet they remain truly unique. With Jake Oni handling vocal duties, Martin Andres and Brandon White on guitar, Chase Bryant on bass and Joe Greulich on drums, they are also perhaps the first metal band to feature a Xylosynth player, Johnny D, which adds an intriguing dynamic to the nine tracks found on Ironshore.
Ironshore was produced by Josh Wilbur, primarily recognized for his work with top metal artists Lamb Of God and Gojira. Through this connection, ONI was able to reach out to Lamb Of God vocalist Randy Blythe, who contributed his inimitable style to “The Only Cure” – one of Ironshore‘s heaviest moments.
Ironshore tracklisting:
- Barn Burner
- Eternal Recurrence
- The Only Cure (featuring Randy Blythe of Lamb of God)
- The Science
- Spawn and Feed
- Chasing Ecstasy
- Kanvas
- Thrive
- Coast to Coast
You can get Ironshore pre-orders via www.metalblade.com/oni
Check out our interview with Jake Oni
Hi this is Ace with Rock Revolt Magazine, I’m here with Jake Oni from Oni, how are you doing Jake? You’re out on the road with Max & Iggor Cavalera, how’s that going?
Jake: I’m doing pretty well. Yep, we’re on the road with Max & Iggor Cavalera, playing with them has been awesome, they’ve been super supportive of us. It’s been great, it’s an honor to play with them every night.
Do you guys normally like to catch their sets each night?
Jake: Oh yeah, we catch them a lot. Max is actually playing our drummer Joe’s floor toms, so it’s been pretty wild.
How’s the road been? You guys have a few more dates left on this tour.
Jake: The other guys on the tour are really cool, all the guys in All Hail The Yeti and Combichrist are rad, we all get along really well.
You guys are going to be releasing your new album Ironshore on November 25 via Metal Blade/Blacklight Media. And then you’re touring more?
Jake: Yes, that is correct and we actually have hard copies on the road so if anyone is coming out to the next few shows, make sure to visit our merch booth and pick one up! You can get it before it actually hits stores, right from us, and we can sign them for you too.
We’re not planning any headliners right now but we’re going to be opening for a few bands coming up, so that’ll be pretty cool. After we release the record we’re going to tour a bit more with Children of Bodom, Abbath and Exmortus in the US. We definitely want to keep touring and playing where we can. Maybe for a few years and then we’ll work on another album!
This album was produced mostly by Josh Wilbur who has worked with bands like Lamb of God and Gojira – how was it working with him?
Jake: Josh is the best. He’s like a good friend of ours too. We’d play basketball all the time and go hang out – his family and my family together. He’s a cool dude, great to work with. Even though we worked really hard it felt like it flew by. He has a great ear and is such a good mixer. He really knows what to look for to make his records sounds amazing. The new Korn sounds so good – he mixed that. Our new record sounds great, thanks to Josh.
What’s it like being so close to a producer like that? Do you guys ever go back and forth on the way you think something should sound and the way he thinks something should sound? Any friendly quarrels?
Jake: No, I wouldn’t say so. I think he and I have very similar taste so we agree on mostly everything. He’s so easy to work with. I can’t speak on behalf of everyone else in the band, but me personally, he’s the easiest guy to work with. Everyone loves him. He’ll suggest something and it’ll sound different to everyone, but once we get comfortable and the ideal settles in, we all agree. He’s great at keeping us – the band and myself individually – in check.
For people who don’t know what a Xylosynth is, explain what it is and how it comes into play on the record.
Jake: It’s the lead solo instrument for us. It sounds like a keyboard but it’s definitely its own thing. A Xylophone through midi, played with two mallets in each hand. It’s intense, man. You can adjust it to have it output whatever sound you want. It sounds inhuman when John is playing but it really is him playing everything. He’s a shredder, man.
Let everybody know where they can check out your stuff and get your music! Anything else you want to say to your fans?
Jake: www.theoniband.com is where you can check out all of our new stuff, tour dates, and get our new album. We’re also on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter as well. Check out the album and have a great day!
ONI – Links:
By Ace Sims
