Oracle – Desolate Kings: The Oracle Anthology
Divebomb Records 2010
Back in the early 90’s, Oracle was one of many young bands out there that had a great sound and a solid EP but never was able to put out a full length before splitting up. Fortunately for us, Divebomb Records along with Tribunal Records are giving us another chance to listen to Oracle’s music, including their acclaimed EP Selah as well as three demos. While Magdalene Records released the Selah EP along with Emerald’s Armed for Battle in 2001, this release is a lot crisper as the EP and demos were mastered/re-mastered for a better quality. On the songs from Selah, you hear the soaring vocals of Shawn Pelota, the amazing guitar-work of Robert Kerns and Jimmy Weaver, and the pounding rhythms of Thomas Mitchell on bass and Jay Denny on drums. The EP and both 1990 demos are in a melodic Power/Speed Metal genre, similar to Iron Maiden. The two-song demo from 1992 is definitely a change as it’s heavier than the other releases. It sounds more like Countdown to Extinction-era Megadeth. What makes it all interesting is that vocalist Shawn Pelota only sang on the Selah release whereas guitarist Jimmy Weaver handles the vocals for the 1990 demos and guitarist Robert Kerns handles the vocals for the 1992 demo. But all of the songs are top notch. “Look Away” from the 1990 demo is the predecessor to “Passage Denied” from Selah with just a couple of lines changed. Some of the standout tracks are “Passage Denied”, “Desolate Kings”, “The Spirit of Egypt” and “Wolves of the Cloth”. The only downside to this album is that the second 1990 demo is actually the same songs as the other 1990 demo, but it’s rawer and has a lower quality sound. But other than that, it’s a fantastic release of some great music that most people never heard.
[rating:6/7]
Reviewed By: Jeff de los Santos
