BOOK OF OMENS

"Mixing together experimental jazz and doom metal, [Book of Omens is] a series of explosive leviathans of surging power interspersed with moments of quiet sonic beauty...Rosenboom goes all-in on his vision…nothing here sounds compromised or scaled back." 
— Dave Sumner,  eMusic.com

"Many will duck for cover, but those who weather the maelstrom will be rewarded by stunningly ominous compositional ideas realised with brilliance and, sometimes, downright ferocity."
— John Shand, Sydney Morning Herald

"Oh, and it's not tech-metal in a jaw dropping WTF widdlemageddon Behold The Arctopus type way. You could probably get away with playing it in a fancy restaurant. Well, for a while. The clientele would soon be ordering their steak ultra-rare and eating it bare handed and smearing blood over themselves before demanding a human sacrifice for dessert."
— Ewan Frater, Spoonful Of Tar

"With Rosenboom’s clear trumpet piercing through the rock-inflected static...electric bassist Tim Lefebvre’s electronic effects swirling about in the background...the abrupt noise-rock desolation of Vossler and the rhythm section...Golia’s ominous flute during the impending doom of...Mayhall’s tribal beat...Omens is jazz-rock, exploiting the musicianship of the former and the intensity of the latter, wrapped in a purposeful concept."
— S. Victor Aaron, Something Else Reviews

"Rosenboom's Book of Omens...turn[s] the precarious jazz-metal soundscape into fertile ground for unfettered improvisational exploration... Vossler's guitar work is key to the overall sound: the combination of rapid-fire virtuosity (evident especially on track 2, "Playing With Fire,") and expert manipulation of distortion opens the space for the more "jazz-sounding" horns to bring their sound into the mix. Mayhall's versatility, from no-holds-barred drumset pounding to attentive and precise auxiliary percussion effects, along with Lefebvre's gigantic sound and mastery of electronic effects, round out a perfect "rhythm section" for this project. I put the term in quotes, because throughout most of the free-flowing compositions, rhythm takes a backseat to timbre; however, these musicians provide a timbral foundation in a similar way that a traditional rhythm section would lay down the groove.

Golia and Rosenboom float masterfully over the top of these shifting timbres. Golia, Rosenboom's former professor at CalArts and mentor to many young LA improvisers, alternates between a variety of woodwind instruments on each track, matching each with the demands of each track---rumbling etherially on bass clarinet, belting saxophone skronk, and a variety of shades in between. Rosenboom, operating perhaps the most timbrally limited instrument, nonetheless has created a cycle of compositions that allow for his trumpet to fit on the top of all these different sounds. His tone is piercing and unwavering, full of confidence that soars over the band with the same grace and power of a big band's lead trumpet. Supported as it is by such a rich foundation, he projects himself effortlessly, providing the keystone for the robust sonic structures the band builds here."
— Alex W. Rodriguez, UCLA Ethnomusicology Review

Released on July 9th, 2013 on Nine Winds Records

Recorded on March 30th, 2012 at Kingsize Sound Labs, Los Angeles, CA. 

Produced by Daniel Rosenboom 
Sound Engineered by John Baffa 
Mixed and Mastered by John Baffa and Daniel Rosenboom at TV Tray Studios, Simi Valley, CA. 

Album Art and Layout: Kio Griffith/9pm.com 

All music © Daniel Rosenboom Music (ASCAP), 2013. 
All Rights Reserved. 

www.danielrosenboom.com 
 www.ninewinds.com

ABOUT BOOK OF OMENS 

Book of Omens is, in essence, a concept album inspired by an original shamanic myth about the cleansing and reforming of a corrupted universe. The album presents a new sonic zodiac, with 12 distinct chords representing 12 different symbolic “omens” or zodiacal signs, each chord governing the “harmonic astrology” for an entire piece, resulting in a suite of 12 pieces, book-ended by a prologue and epilogue that state all 12 chords in succession. 

As writer and pianist Gary Fukushima put it: “The music is cataclysmic and chaotic, a terrifying sonic prophecy of universal destruction and rebirth. The aesthetics are undeniably metal, but Book of Omens is also expansive and deconstructive, an illustration of time and space falling into irreparable catastrophe, with moments of incandescent beauty amid violent bursts of raucous groove lashing out in their death throes.”

BOOK OF OMENS - The Myth 

Dawn, 
and eyes emerge 
caught briefly in a moment, 
between Dream and Day. 
A quick gasp 
breaks fast from Darkness, 
but the memory of Vision 
lingers. 

A day's journey 
to the edge of the world 
where Earth meets Sky 
and Spirits fly, 
where visions travel 
into Space 
and tapestries unweave. 

The Lone Rose, 
an oracle, 
shelters secrets in her petals 
and intoxicates with fragrant scent, 
leading Seers to the truth. 

Her petals open gracefully, 
like the pages of a Book of Omens, 
and inscribed upon her sacred leaves, 
12 Sigils for the End of Time: 

The Playful Fire 
rises wild to the sky, 
dancing fast and rough, 
like warriors on the precipise of battle. 
As feral flames flicker, 
embers soar into the night, 
playing war games with stars, 
until the Universe ignites. 
And as wonder overtakes 
and hearts are purged of expectation, 
the Fire whirls itself away 
and settles back to Earth. 

Rising from the Fire's ashes 
a chalky trail of smoke 
spreads wide across the theater of the Sky 
and gathers, swirling into form… 

The Great Smoke Moth, 
messenger of spirits, 
conduit of knowledge 
from another side of being. 
His message thunders gently, 
coaxing Seers forward and beyond, 
bidding those who would discover, 
"Embrace terror, awe, and trepidation, 
and journey through mist, 
and find yourself amongst stars, 
enlightened in their glow." 

And as Moth's deep and rolling voice 
echoes faint and distant, fading, 
smoke transforms and envelops 
the Brave 
and leads forward with a cunning grin. 

The Panther, 
the prowler, the predator, 
treads sly, intrepid, 
through smokey jungles 
leading Hunters through their fear. 
He scans the jungle floor, 
leaping into trees, across branches and vines, 
searching for The Helpless. 
Found and doomed, 
Prey screams in terror, 
and wails as red-eyed Death 
slaughters without mercy, 
and as their cries are silenced, 
and Life spills out from open veins, 
A bubble in the pool of blood 
swells full and rises upward. 

The Blood Moon rises, 
full and gleaming, 
drenched in sanguine glaze, 
transfixing Seers, 
paralyzed in wonder. 
The harbinger of final hours, 
deep-red cloak shimmering, 
and the faintest turquoise sliver 
glinting on her bottom edge, 
she makes her grand procession, 
climbing high into the night. 
Her halo stretches endlessly, 
beaming bright throughout the Sky, 
and when finally her journey summits, 
a single drop of blood 
elongates, serpentine, 
and glaring yellow eyes 
flash open at its head. 

The Viper 
slithers steadily, 
through stars and down the midnight dome, 
to whisper honey-coated messages 
to Listeners with open ears. 
Yet sweetness often prefaces 
toxicity and malady, 
and excessive knowledge 
poisons any mind with 
plagues of useless thoughts. 
And as Venom flows in deeper, 
making way toward the heart, 
a raging swarm of insects, 
a horde of speculations 
portends abduction of the Soul. 

The Swarm 
encircles with a deafening roar, 
as though every insect that ever lived, 
conspires to overwhelm, 
yet the Master of his Fear 
can rise within the chaos 
and expand within the moment 
into steadiness unfazed. 
The Swarm grows furiously wilder, 
and the Sound grows impossibly louder, 
yet still the heartbeat slows, 
and somehow, in the swirling madness, 
a great Peace ascends, 
and the Swarm diffuses as a silent mist. 

And in the Mist of confusion, 
a Seer needs a guide, 
but faith in newfound Peace and Patience 
draws noble forces near. 

A Wolf in the Mist, 
a lone companion through fog, 
gives purpose to feet, 
and beckons Seekers follow fast 
with wind in stride 
and fire-eyes. 
Swift and steady, 
Past pine and fern, 
Run fleet and flashing 
through murky wood 
and chase the scent of golden grass, 
'Til bursting through a wall of mist 
Sun's rays beam brilliant on face and plain. 

The Last Regent, 
the Great Bull, 
guardian of rolling plains, 
arbiter of nature's balance, 
stands regal before Wolf and Man. 
He hears the plea of a starving dog, 
unfitting for a noble beast, 
And must concede a tilted scale. 
And in seeing merit to Wolf's entreat, 
as balance is a state of flux, 
sees only one response to maintain honor: 
Self-sacrifice in service of the Wild's law. 

And with a righteous bow, 
so serves his flesh to ravenous jaws 
redeeming a sad and unjust world, 
and restoring balance for a moment. 

As Life for one becomes Life for another, 
Wolf howls his thanks toward the sun, 
And Sound takes Shape 
and soars into Sky. 

A Golden Eagle, 
Winged Wisdom, 
Sun-kissed feathers shining in the sky, 
emerging from Wolf's howling mouth 
takes flight, 
and spirals up toward the Sun. 
And as he reaches nearer, 
touching sunbeams with outstretched wings, 
Time's relentless march 
Begins to slow, 
and by foretold time of Eagle Eclipse, 
Time is but a memory, 
and a ghostly figure looms in shadow. 

The Pale One, 
the androgynous specter, 
a monolith with barren eyes, 
holds Seers stunned in awestruck gaze. 
A rush of feeling, 
a tidal wave of all emotions, 
consumes all who face the faceless god, 
And just as the myriad array 
of every sadness, passion, ecstasy 
threaten to explode the heart, 
an ashen arm stretches out, 
a translucent finger points 
to a blazing beacon 
streaking across the sky. 

The Celestial Arrow, 
with an incredible jolt, 
pulls Seers in its wake. 
Zooming through the universe 
at speeds unfathomed, 
the heavens melt, 
the tapestry of universal history 
unweaves the fabric of Space and Time. 
The arrow races ever faster, 
stars and planets whizzing past wide eyes, 
a resplendent tunnel of brilliant light 
leading directly into the Sun, 
the Heart. 
Love. 
One in the same, 
the source of Life, 
and with an incredible impact, 
the arrow pierces the Sun, 
the Heart bursts. 

Supernova. 
In the cosmic mirror of the sky, 
WE watch in awe as the Sun, 
the Heart, 
explodes with unimaginable force, 
expanding infinitely, 
consuming the universe, 
an inexorable wave of fire. 
All planets, moons, stars, 
all Life 
incinerates, 
Stardust scatters throughout the heavens. 
Yet in the wake of absolute destruction, 
ash and ember gathers, 
and a single rose springs forth 
from a tiny fragment of The Earth… 

In the bursting of the Seer's heart, 
the explosion of his emotions, 
and the infinity of his love, 

The Universe is reborn.

— Daniel Rosenboom (2013)