Album Review: "Akroasis" by Obscura

Akroasis

As human beings we tend to congregate, bet it in a place of worship, at concerts, out shopping, and any other make and manner of activity.

We are social beings.

In every group, congregation, or running crew, there's always one person who just doesn't quite fit in.

It's not necessarily because they're strange, but in my personal case it usually is.

There are people who we've known for our whole lives and even though our people have changed, they're still in the circle even if just outside of it. So picture your group of friends. Say that you're all out at your favorite watering hole, singing some karaoke, or just relaxing after a long hard week.

Who's the one that's just a bit different from the rest?

Obscura

Obscura is a veteran, progressive death metal band from Germany which would explain why everything is so perfectly on time.

The term progressive metal is bandied about quite a lot in this day and age, but rarely does it find itself attached to death metal.

We are all aware of symphonic death  metal, but we are talking about something wholly different...for the most part anyway.

At first glance, Obscura does very little to distance itself from the pack of death metal middlings out there.

The listener has to wait it out.

Once the change hits, this band will sound like no other death metal band in the world today, or in the world of yesterday.

The blast beats are as ubiquitous as the rain in Seattle. The vocals are growled. Of course, the guitar solos melt faces.

But then add in some seemingly Buckethead inspired space guitar sounds and frankly, I heard the bending of space and time during the solos. The swift changes into melodic pools bolstered by bass melodies are only made the  more amazing by the ever changing chorus of voices.

I won't even touch the last song on the record, because I want you to hear it for yourself and you should do just that.

Release: 2/5/16
Genre: Death Metal
Label: Relapse Records
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