Album review: ONI – The Silver Line

Essentially a vehicle for one-man metalcore powerhouse Jake Oni, ONI's latest release comes barely a year after the Canadian’s last album Loathing Light, which garnered praise for its variety and host of guest stars. This one includes just as many friends – Aura, featuring Howard Jones and Spiritbox man Josh Gilbert who also produces, is a particular stand-out. However, with a running time that barely touches 30 minutes and a more homogeneous approach to songwriting, it seems more of placeholder than a step forward.

Spark, as the title suggests, is an immediate light in the dark, and much enhanced by a contribution from pop-punk resurgence type Sueco, who also guested on Papa Roach’s Swerve last year. Cyanide and The Dread arrive in similar corrosive bludgeon, quickly evolving into fluid hooks sung as if from the top of a skyscraper. The latter brings in harsh vocals from Justin Hill, shouter for UK noise merchants SikTh. Armageddon featuring The Contortionist initially appears to be the heaviest thing on this rapid-fire return, pure rage and monster movie stomp. It briefly drops you into a dreamscape before plummeting you straight back into the fire – but in a bizarre twist appears to fade out before it’s really finished.

Closing song Burns My Soul again adheres to the same heavy-but-melodic format, though it does dare to bring in a few electronic flourishes. Its free-flowing chorus is so weirdly warming that it bears comparison to an unlikely source, Scottish noise pop creatives VUKOVI. That said, Jake Oni has stepped away from the precipice on this album – taking artistic plunges in areas outside metalcore is not for him this time.

It doesn’t make The Silver Line less than a good album – no-one that’s bought a Beartooth album could argue with that – but it nevertheless stops short of the diversity we had from him before.

Verdict: 3/5

For fans of: Beartooth, Gojira, Protest The Hero

The Silver Line is out October 13 via Ironshore