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[Review] O.S.I. ‘Fire Make Thunder’

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osifiremakethunder

For those of you who don’t know O.S.I. (shame on you!), they could easily be considered a supergroup of prog metal masters. Featuring Kevin Moore (ex-Dream Theater) and Jim Matheos (Fates Warning) as the two staple members, their albums have seen appearances from Mike Portnoy (ex-Dream Theater, Adrenaline Mob), Gavin Harrison (Porcupine Tree), Mikael Akerfeldt (Opeth, Bloodbath), Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree), and several more. With credentials like that, this is a band that practically demands notice.
I’ve personally been a fan of this band for several years. That’s why I was so excited when I heard that a new album, Fire Make Thunder, was set for release. Now that I have it, does it live up to my expectations?

Let me describe the sound of O.S.I. for you real quick, as it’s unfair to just label them a prog rock band and leave it at that. Yes, they have some odd time signatures here and there. Yes, they do amazing mixtures of mellow and heavy. But there is also something very industrial about the band. I’m not referring to the electronic subgenre either. It’s more that I envision steel factories when listening to O.S.I.. Grimy smokestacks rising up, a dark smog cloud hanging overhead. That’s how I feel when I listen to O.S.I. and I like it.
With Fire Make Thunder, that same feeling washed over me as soon as I hit ‘Play’. It was a cold, mechanical welcome that I felt very comfortable embracing. Now, that’s not to say that the album feels harsh or overly digital. There are definitely moments of gentle warmth and beauty, such as in Winds Won’t Howl. There are also times when the band hits you hard, like in the instrumental Enemy Prayer
This album doesn’t feel as heavy as previous releases, but that’s not what is important about O.S.I.. Listening to one of their albums is like embarking on a sonic journey where new and amazing tones and sounds assault you from all sides constantly. Crassly put, it’s an audiophile’s wet dream. It sounds fantastic and I truly enjoyed listening to it several times.
The Final Word: Fire Make Thunder only reinforces my love for O.S.I.. It’s a beautiful, harsh album that I’ll be returning to many times in the future.
Check out our exclusive interview with Jim Matheos here.
Got any thoughts/questions/concerns for Jonny B.? Shoot him a message on Twitter!
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GUNSHIP Debuts ‘Time After Time’ Music Video Featuring Unseen ‘Whistle’ Footage

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Whistle Gunship video "Time After Time"

Synthwave outfit GUNSHIP has released a new official music video this morning for their cover of Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time” featured on the soundtrack to Corin Hardy’s (The Nun, The Hallow) supernatural horror film Whistle.

To bring it full circle, Corin Hardy directs the music video himself, incorporating previously unseen footage from Whistle. More specifically, the new music video features an extended sequence from the film.

This collaboration builds on GUNSHIP’s longstanding relationship with Hardy, who previously contributed vocals to the band’s track “Cthulhu.”

“Working with Corin is a total dream,” said GUNSHIP. “He’s an old friend who we bonded with over our love for cinema and music, and we were honored to have our song featured in the film. After the Whistle premiere, we were chatting over a pint, and he told us about a beautiful pseudo ‘one shot’ sequence he was heartbroken to lose in the final film. We suggested resurrecting it and using it as a music video. Corin got it immediately, and the result is perfect. It’s heartbreaking, haunting and pure 80s noir soaked.”

Corin Hardy added: “I wanted Whistle to feel like a horror movie I might have watched around the late 1980s, alongside films like A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Lost Boys, and The Breakfast Club. Films steeped in teen-angst and heightened feelings. Music was such a huge part of creating the romance of those cinematic worlds. Gunship’s synth-drenched cover of Cyndi Lauper’s ‘Time After Time’ was always top of my list. Their unique heart-on-your-sleeve sound was the perfect choice for a key moment in the movie. To come together post-release and create this extended music video is simply the cherry on top. Dan, Al & Al (Gunship) have provided the film a real companion piece in the world of Whistle… it makes me want my MTV again!”

It’s a fitting collaboration, as music serves a narrative purpose in Whistle. Music, the director told Bloody Disgusting, was a means of immersing viewers in this world and its characters’ perspectives. Hardy even touched on this particular track: “So in a way, the music you’ll listen to is effectively what Chrys is listening to, which is her dad’s record collection. Then there are other songs like the Gunship track, which is a Cyndi Lauper cover, which is more like Rel’s [Sky Yang] music. It comes in when we have a sequence in Rel’s romantic heartbreak moment. So yeah, I made a character list of who might be listening to what.”

Whistle sees a misfit group of unwitting high school students confronted with mortality when they blow a cursed Aztec Death Whistle, setting a terrifying chain of events in motion.

Dafne Keen (Logan, The Acolyte“), Sophie Nélisse (“Yellowjackets”), Sky Yang (Rebel Moon), Jhaleil Swaby (“Supergirl”), Ali Skovbye (Grizzly Night, “Firefly Lane”), Percy Hynes White (“Wednesday”), Michelle Fairley (“Game of Thrones”), and Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead).

The supernatural teen horror movie is available to stream on Shudder now.

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