Sevas Tra stands for "art saves," a philosophy written all over Otep's debut full-length, an album that yanks itself from the jaws of suffering with rage, anger, doom, and a sound heavier than Slipknot.

Female lead singer Otep, whose name is an Egyptian suffix meaning "creative offerings," growls, screams, and throws in the occasional hip-hop sound ("Battle Ready" and "Sacrilege") as she wipes the slate clean of any preconceptions of how intense a female-fronted metal band could be.

Marilyn Manson has said, "That girl scares me," of Otep, not surprising when you hear the eerie, pained opening of "Emtee" or frightening whine of "Blood Pigs." Sevas Tra is a record that raises the high watermark for goth metal.