Omar Veluz “Do You Really Wanna”

In the music video for his new single “Do You Really Wanna,” we find Omar Veluz quite literally in the depths of a dark environment only his command of the verses can bring back to life. There’s an infectious sense of impending doom waiting for us on the horizon of the industrial-style melodies here, but because of his efficient lyrical lashings, we never feel as though Veluz is about to leave us in the lurch as he escapes the oncoming apocalypse to certain safety. He has the audience by the hand in this performance, and with a quick wit behind the microphone, he leads us through hell with inspiring harmonies alone. 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/omarveluz?lang=en

The vocal Veluz is putting up in this track is undeniably agile, skewing the metallic elements in the background with a lean melodicism that I wouldn’t necessarily expect to find in contemporary hard rock. There’s been a lot of indulgence among his competitors lately, and although the mainstream trend has been leaning towards excess, I like that he isn’t filling the backend of “Do You Really Wanna” with over the top vocals more suited to what you’d hear from a Dio tribute band. His versatility is the star of the show here more than anything else, which requires precision on every front. 

Despite the tightness of the master mix, the guitar parts in this single are still quite biting and contribute a lot of edginess to the track overall. It might have been wise to give the bass a little more room to breathe beside the drums in the chorus, but if suffocating sonic aggression was intended to be the name of the game from start to finish in “Do You Really Wanna,” it makes sense why Veluz would choose to do what he did in this release. 

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/do-you-really-wanna-feat-ivan-mendez/1565850462?i=1565850463

All in all, this single is packing the kind of summer scare that rock fans shouldn’t miss, and in contrast to what the commercial outfits in the genre have been making lately, this is as real and unrelenting as it gets. Rather than trying to follow in the footsteps of so many other crossover players who craft something for a motion picture – in this case Scare Us – Omar Veluz was intent on giving this song a life of its own, and I think that through his dedicated approach to every stage of the composing process, we’re hearing a more full-bodied result in this piece than the status quo could have ever mustered. 

Zachary Rush