''The Ascension'' (stylized as ''the_Ascension'') is the third studio album by

Otep Otep is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 2000. They have released two EPs, eight studio albums, and one live album. They are currently signed with Napalm Records. The band has sold over 500,000 albums world ...

. The album was recorded at The original release date was set for March 20, 2007 through

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

, however, the album was delayed indefinitely due to the merger with

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...

. The album debuted at number 81 on the ''Billboard'' 200 with 10,200 copies sold.

Recording

The album was partly recorded in New Orleans, Louisiana, where producer

Dave Fortman Dave Fortman (born July 11, 1967) is an American record producer and musician. He is the guitarist for rock band Ugly Kid Joe, and has worked with bands such as Superjoint Ritual, Snot, Atomship, Eyehategod, Mudvayne, Otep, Slipknot (on thei ...

was living. New Orleans, especially the

9th Ward The Ninth Ward or 9th Ward is a distinctive region of New Orleans, Louisiana, which is located in the easternmost downriver portion of the city. It is geographically the largest of the 17 Wards of New Orleans. On the south, the Ninth Ward is bound ...

was still affected by the effects of

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

. Otep said the area and while the songs were not influenced by the area, the mood of the album was. Several songs were written with

Mudvayne Mudvayne is an American heavy metal band formed in Peoria, Illinois in 1996. Known for their sonic experimentation, face and body paint, masks and uniforms, the band has sold over six million records worldwide, including nearly three millio ...

guitarist

Greg Tribbett Gregory Arnold Tribbett Jr. (born November 7, 1968) is an American guitarist who is one of the founding members, lead guitarist and backing vocalist of the metal band Mudvayne. He is also the former lead guitarist and backing vocalist of the met ...

, who Fortman had worked with in the past.

Songs

Confrontation

Otep explained the song to ''KNAC.com'': "It was about writing a protest anthem to stand up, speak out and strike back. To celebrate the unique opportunity that we have here in America. You can do anything to have your voice be heard in this country, that’s the beauty of this country. There’s no one stopping anyone in America from getting out on the street and saying something or writing a letter or e-mailing and text messaging now that everything is now, now, now." Otep compared the song to "Warhead" from ''House Of Secrets.''

Breed

"Breed" is a cover of Nirvana, from their album ''Nevermind''. It is Otep's first cover song. "We'd never done a cover song before but I just love the song. I listen to music before we play on tour and that song just kind of grabbed me. I couldn't get enough of it. I'd listen to it 60, 70 times, just over and over in the back of the bus before the show,” she explained to ''Campus Circle''. “For me, it's just this amazing song that touched me in a certain way that made me miss Nirvana a lot and Kurt Cobain's touch on musical culture and his philosophy on music and art. I just wanted to do something to inspire and to, in a way, connect our energies.”

Reception

''The Ascension'' received mixed reviews from critics.

Track listing

Personnel

Otep Shamaya Otep Shamaya is an American singer and rapper, best known as the lead vocalist and founder of the eponymous metal band Otep. Career Shamaya made her debut in 2000 with her band OTEP, and released the full-length albums ''Sevas Tra'' (June 200 ...

– vocals * Karma Singh Cheema – guitars *

Holly Knight ''Ilex'' (), or holly, is a genus of over 570 species of flowering plants in the family Aquifoliaceae, and the only living genus in that family. ''Ilex'' has the most species of any woody dioecious angiosperm genus. The species are evergreen o ...

– mellotron, piano, programming on "Perfectly Flawed" * Jason "eViL J" McGuire – bass guitar, backup vocals * Brian Wolff – drums

Production

* Art direction, design – Otep Shamaya, P.R. Brown * Photography – P.R. Brown, Sam Throne * Engineer – Jeremy Parker * Assistant engineers – David Troia, Drew Vonderhaar, Wesley Fontenot * Executive producer – Jonathan Cohen, Otep Shamaya * Mastering –

Ted Jensen Ted Jensen (born September 19, 1954) is an American mastering engineer, known for having mastered many recordings, including the Eagles' ''Hotel California'', Green Day's '' American Idiot'' and Norah Jones' ''Come Away with Me''. Biography Ted ...

* Recording, producer, mixing –

* Drum technician – Rory Facianne * Co-producer – Holly Knight

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ascension, The 2007 albums Otep albums Capitol Records albums Albums produced by Dave Fortman