Chicago, Illinois based Post-Doom Beware of Gods premiere first single “Temple of Thieves” ahead of new album “Upon Whom The Last Light Descends.”
“Tracking with Pete Grossmann at Bricktop is a highlight of my career & life. His work with Huntsmen, Frail Body, Gates To Hell, Warforged & his own band High Priest is prime, top of the peak, best out there imo. His knowledge base, technique, wisdom & vision really advanced Temple Of Thieves, as well as all the songs, from what it was in infancy, to the monster it became in the studio. Eric Plonka (Scientist, Yakuza, DRÖV, PLNKA) laid down additional heavy blankets of creepy, other worldly guitars in just the right sections, that seem to be crawling of a formless void. Kellii Scott of Failure is of course beyond monumental to the deep ditch digging groove factor on drums, laying a foundation for Feederwire (REKT, Unterm Rad) to construct a digi-doom encrusted network of futuristic soundscapes & Sci Fi audio architecture.” – Jason O’Donnell
Stream “Themple Of Thieves” here: https://www.nocleansinging.com/2025/02/21/an-ncs-premiere-beware-of-gods-temple-of-thieves/
“Upon Whom The Last Light Descends” by Beware Of Gods is a IV Part, Epic, psychoperatic cathartic concept inspired by “The Blind Idiot God” from the HP Lovecraft mythos known as Azathoth. Other literary & film inspirations include : Dune, The Matrix, Dracula, Demian, Mad Max, Blade Runner, Jonah & The Whale & Foundation.
From melancholy to pure menace, the vocals of B. O. G. lone wolf Jason O’Donnell aka The Archetype soar across UWTLLD and hover like a cloud of locusts within the angular atonal trudging combat between his Doom laden guitars & calderaesque fuzzed out bass pummeling. The Droning trudging of dissonant riffage is backed by the solid, just ‘behind the beat’ groove of guest drummer Kellii Scott of Alt Space Rock giants Failure. Beware Of Gods is a warning and a blessing. An honoring of the gift of despair from which clarity takes flight and we find the courage to face the monster, to reconcile It to become and overcome It…
It has been two years since Beware Of Gods arrived on the scene & blew up on Bandcamp acquiring fans from all over the world seemingly overnight. For an independent one man operation on lockdown during the pandemic, working remotely with Kellii Scott of Failure on drums and veteran producer/engineer Mike Tholen (Ministry, Johnny Polonsky, Liz Phair, Buddy Guy), B. O. G. achieved rave reviews & solid international support within in the ‘Doom’ and ‘Post-Doom’ community. The tide, however, was already shifting.
With fresh ears & a renewed listen to PT I of Beware Of Gods’ Epic Saga “Upon Whom The Last Light Descends Hath Known Hell and Called It Heaven” out now on Invoke Records, it is immediately apparent that while founding member, principal composer, Jason O’Donnell is steeped in an affinity for & consciousness of the proto-Doom Metal tradition, there is way more going on in his compositions & productions than what can be easily placed into one box/genre. That awareness shifts my attention to The Archetype’s at times, hauntingly pained melodic voice juxtaposed against ‘blackened’ discordant whispered screams or guttural growls that tip the hat to Chris Cornell, Chino Moreno or Thou as much as perhaps Ozzy Osbourne.
In terms of ambient soundscapes, there are also stellar initial stabs at sound design work on PT I that bring to mind Skinny Puppy or even NIN. From here, my journey into the B. O. G. gets really interesting because after being offered an opportunity to hear rough mixes of songs for PT II & III, the addition of Sound Design veteran Feederwire & Engineer/Producer Pete Grossmann (Gates To Hell, Warforged, Weekend Nachos, Frail Body, Scientist, Huntsmen) of Bricktop Recording is already bringing the concept into even more focus & catapulting it into what The Archetype references in the intro “Concussion Dream” as “Amnesia Island.”
It is clear upon further listens that The Archetype is taking late night swims in the pools of Radiohead & Failure (ironic in that Kellii Scott plays drums on all tracks) as much as SUNN and Conan. In honoring his past & stitching it together with a commitment to modern relevancy & future vision, Beware Of Gods & The Archetype are clearly on the cusp of something completely fresh, forward thinking & future dooming.