Om consist of bassist-vocalist Al Cisneros and drummer Chris Hakius. The two were former members of Sleep, whose masterpiece, Dopesmoker, is considered one of the finest achievements of the stoner-metal genre. With Om, they are carrying the stoner torch, but its hard to categorize them as stoner metal. As their moniker suggests, there is a meditative, mantra-esque strain coursing through their music. The pair are content to brood over the same two or three notes for 1012 minutes, drawing the listener in through concentrated repetition like some slow-moving river. But then, after a pause for breath, Om erupt and their once soft riffs become landslides, crashing waves, and howling winds, capable of patiently eroding entire mountains. They did this for their first two records and they did it for their third and latest, Pilgrimage. Its not gimmicky, though; Om are just Om. . . . And for those of us with a love of both Alice Coltrane and Kyuss, they could do it forever and we wouldnt mind. With Lichens and Sir Richard Bishop. BRIAN J. BARR
Wed., Jan. 16, 8 p.m., 2008
