Labels: INDIE recordings / RELAPSE records
Death metal outfit Obliteration comes from Kolboth, the hometown of Norwegian black metal legends Darkthrone… seriously does the water over there have some magical properties?
After two full-lengths, Perpetual Decay (2007) and Nekropsalms (2009), a couple of EPs and the sick split with Diskord, Lobotomized and Execration, wisely entitled Oslo We Rot, Obliteration took some time off. Thankfully with their latest release, Black Death Horizon, they show that they have not lost any of their edge. On the contrary, they sound even angrier, more manic and even more devoted to what they are doing.
The influences from both the European death metal bands and the American scene are present. To put it mildly, if the hair at the back of your neck stands straight when you listen to Autopsy and Dismember then this release is definitely for you. Moments such as “Transient Passage” bring all the malice of the extreme metal scene of the late 80s and early 90s back to the present; you can smell the fucking corpses on that one. Furthermore, if you also have a soft spot for the more mid-tempo and ritualistic vibe, Obliteration have a fair amount of material that will make your head spin. The hellish opening track of the album, “The Distant Sun (They Are the Key)”, unleashes a storm of dissonance while the band is slowly building on their ceremonial progression. The extent of the malevolent force that this band can conjure is stretched to its limits with the unreal title track spreading fear and destruction in its path. The dead are rising from their graves while the level of insanity on the track is kept at an extremely high level, making this torturous march of death even darker.
And of course, apart from the old school influences and mid-tempo destruction, Obliteration also have a fair bit of chaos in their songs. Coupled always with lunacy, whenever the band decides to unleash an all-out attack on your ears, you can feel the whole world getting twisted. The second part of the opening track is a prime example of that, and the intensity with which the band exploits their riffology reaches a whole different level in “Goat Skull Crown” – it is as if an ancient and hungry dark entity has just been set loose on this world.
The signal for complete chaos is given with the piercing guitars coming in on “Ascendance (Sol Invictus)”, dragging you further into the twisted visions of the band with a sick bass line setting the whole track ablaze. The devilish riffs are still as large and the chaotic solos are always just a breath away. And then the ultimate devastation is brought forth, with a deathgrunt kicking things off in the anthem of the album, “Sepulchral Rites”. The band is picking up the pace, unleashing blastbeats and short leads along the way as visions of the world burning appear in front of your eyes.
This is a fucking brilliant old school release. If you live and breathe for old school extreme metal, then this is an album you should not miss. Even the fucking outro, “Churning Magma”, is fucking sick for crying out loud. Obliteration are simply spot on with Black Death Horizon.
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