Technical Ecstasy

While I somewhat regret not having ordered this from Relapse when it came out, perhaps picking up Obscura's limited vinyl pressing of Omnivium recently from a mom-and-pop establishment worked out for the best.  I ended up with the amazing mossy green splash colored vinyl, which may now be my favorite colored piece of vinyl...it's too wonderful for words.

If you're a fan of technical metal, you already know Germany's Obscura, who have embarked on an epic artistic undertaking of a multi-album concept - the scope of which essentially includes the creation, evolution, and destruction of a (the?) cosmos.  This, of course, wouldn't work at all if they weren't completely astoundingly talented as musicians and songwriters.  Some of what you hear in Omnivium will scramble your brain - harmonies that rotate intervals between the two guitars and bass, sweeped semi-harmonic arpeggiated chords, odd time signature changes complete with off kilter percussive rolls and fills, out-of-the-blue dissonant guitar breaks, and bass leads that creep in and out of the mix.  Other bits of what you hear will tap into the primordial self - bludgeoning caveman-simple thrash, palm-muted guitar chunk with double-kick backbeat ferocity, tight-knit rhythm grooves, and powerful guttural vocals.  Everything is sorted and organized just so by the collective science of the band, and yet still bares the emotion and soul of truly heartfelt music.  This is a combinational balance that very few bands can pull off...and even more rarely do it as exquisitely as Obscura have here.  Like the work of a master carpenter, everything fits together perfectly; joints and edges are square and finely matched with a precision of superior craftsmanship and love - their are no glue spots or unsightly gaps...only the marriage of art and form.  Here's the nearly instrumental penultimate track from the record...


Obscura are about to release a collection of demos and covers called Illegimitation and hit the road in Europe with Spawn Of Possession, Gorod, and Exivious.  Here's to hoping they make it back to the States for another leg before we have to wait for their next record.