OTEP sevas tra Otep - Sevas Tra This is the trendiest album I have heard. Otep is a very heavy nu-metal band that sounds like alot of the other stuff out there. Many of the beats are very up-and-down, with alotta heavy guitar mush on top. Personally, I am turned away by this cliche. The guitar, which has a sound similar to Slipknot's latest album, mostly works over the drums to accent the beat. There are, however, some rare times when the guitarist's spazzed-out palm-muting ability is showcased. The band reaches its peak on track 5, entitled "Sacrilege". The exciting, memorable chorus is followed at the end with an extremely tight outro featuring some mad double-bass drums and well-placed guitar chugs that will leave you wondering what happened. The lead singer has a rap/scream/whimper approach, and her voice is accompanied by her bandmates' screams, yells, roars, whimpers, and grunts. Track 6, "Battle Ready", shows her talent for a speedy rap delivery. Yes, she is a woman. Yes, this isn't that important because we can take it for granted. No, I'm not holding this against them. Otep presents and projects the image of a troubled girl who will do or say anything to gain empowerment. Lyrics express anger over female circumcision and metaphorical rape, among other things. There is a real desire for free spirituality and responsibility here. This band presents art as a central part of life. The album, "Sevas Tra", is "Art Saves" backwards. That's not the only thing that's backwards. Between complaining about women's roles in the past and preaching that art saves, Otep prescribes sexism and violence. A theme in this album is the blaming of the holders of power in past generations, which the singer considers to have been mostly white males. But even if this was the case, it literally could have been any group if history had unfolded in a different way. Otep takes this feeling of "patricide" and makes it even more overtly sexist, extending these feelings to men in general as "menocide". We all need to recognize that people are individuals, despite stereotypes and statistics. I see music, especially heavy and pissed-off music, as a good place to deliver insightful messages and to express concern over the problems of our times, toward creating a better future environment. When a punk, hardcore, or heavy metal act performs, I acknowledge that their genre is based in a tradition of confrontation. A trendy trap for pop-culture, and a misdirected assault full of hateful aggression from what may be perceived as the metal underground (Capitol Records?). This attempt to clarify and pave the way for the future has failed miserably, with the dangerous consequences of its fury unseen in its own clouds of smoke. Burning inside to change the world, Otep has drawn upon some pagan and what may have formerly been considered "progressive" themes, but only digs us all deeper into the hole that we, as a society, are in. I dare say that the real strength of this album is to create the situation for our critiquing of it, as our collective faith in what is good is what Otep and all of us truly strive for. The heavy pulse of the band and crowd together, raising their fists, banging their heads, jumping into each other in a seemingly desperate frenzy … This is how we cope with the difficulties we face. It contributes to a feeling that in a sense propels us forward in relation to the state we were in before. But aggression against another person, as opposed to against an idea, is misplaced aggression. History is past. Blaming the people of today for the problems of yesterday is wrong. Some will make arguments about unfair representation, but adding and subtracting from what is presented as “history” still encodes the same problems. Some may argue that no improvement was made without a "fight", but the drive of idealism should inspire one to make a fair ideal the goal. To respond to violence with violence only means more violence. Even if you were somehow able to believe that the end justifies the means, the just end is nowhere in sight. If Otep thinks that they are being progressive or insightful themselves, they couldn’t be much further from the truth. It is true – "Art Saves". Perhaps Sevas Tra will provoke its listeners to create art and actions with clearer messages in response to these attacks and attitudes taken. If that is the purpose of this "art", then I hope it does so VERY quickly. I maintain my Faith In People, as I maintain my faith that Otep will develop into a more conscious group with attitudes more respectful toward us all. It is this faith that allows me to rock out to a band that I do not agree with, but my fear of the consequences of their attitudes constantly tests and therefore strengthens my faith, which must always prevail. I can have faith in someone without listening to them, and that is what I recommend, unless you choose to listen out of curiosity as to what I am referring.