Albums

Album Review : Obituary – Dying of Everything

Posted on 16th January 2023

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Review by Richard Henry for MPM

So here we are with the bands 11^th Studio album, stalwarts of the Florida Death metal scene and a band I first heard way back in 1990 with the Cause of Death album, so I am really excited to dig into this album!

Track 1 – Barely Alive

Wow, I mean that’s what I call coming out of the gates swinging, proper aggressive, double bass up tempo with John screaming over it, now this is not the way we normally start an Obituary album, its normally a lot slower, I love it! We get into a more slayer beat verse and then comes back the double bass, this is by sure the most pissed off sounding a track as I have heard for a long time, the elements are all there, that guitar sound and the riffs are slamming! Nice solo which takes me back to a Cause of Death, has that James Murphy vibe to it, there is nothing not to love about this track!

Track 2 – The Wrong Time

Listen to the start if this and tell me it doesn’t remind you of the track “Infected”! This is right in the vein of classic Obituary, mid-tempo double bass with a nice meaty riff over the top of it with that classic John Tardy vocal delivery, into a half time section before the double bass comes in again, really cool solo hits, loving what Kenny Andrews is doing on guitar on this so far, yeah there is a bit of the trem bar work but ultimately more melodic which really works well, that is just a stomping riff on this one!!

Track 3 – Without a Conscience

The one thing that Obituary do so well is groove and they always have, this is another track that has a real aggressive riff over a slow drum part, and it just is so signature to the band, you couldn’t help but nod your head listening to this, when we hit the middle riff of the song just before the solo it’s just another killer riff, followed by another great solo, again it reminds me of James Murphy’s work but definitely Kenny has his own style as well, the riff after the solo, so simple, so affective, so cool!

Track 4 – War

The riff slowly comes in with an almost tribal drum groove, then when it hits again you have a killer riff that has a super groove drum part underneath it, Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr, pretty sure that’s the way John says it, love the way there is melody way part that accentuates the riff as well, another killer solo, the you come across this guitar part, and apparently that was Trevor Peres playing the riff without being plugged in, then it hits in again, changing the drums underneath to change the groove, really subtle but it works!

Track 5 – Dying of Everything

Straight snare beat with the riff over the top, it actually reminded me of “War of Fidelity” by Old Man’s Child, same sort of vibe, that is one distorted bass sound, then it kicks into high gear, love this style of track from Obituary, you have the speed, the mid-tempo, the double bass parts, this one has it all, you know if you’re in the pit when they play this then some damage is going to be happening! Great solo yet again, some nice tremolo bar work, then we slow it down into a spoken word middle section, before we get slow double bass section with a nasty riff over the top of it, then into another solo, some fantastic playing on offer for all you guitar fans, then that riff again, I love this track!

Track 6 – My Will to Live

Slow almost thrashy style riff to kick this one off, definitely down in tempo but yet it again it just grooves so much, this is going to be a circle pit song, great build up into the middle section, Donald tardy is just the Phil Rudd of death metal, he is so in the groove and in the pocket all the time, he has the fills there and the feet if he needs them but he always serves the song at all times, another more chaos solo section in this one, but it’s just top to bottom a slow driving song

Track 7 – By the Dawn

Slow start, with the swirling vocal scream running round, then bang we are into a double bass onslaught on this, still mid temp, then we get into an almost swing beat (think sabbath) when we get to the chorus, another excellent two solos after chorus two and then back into the double bass and it doesn’t let up bar the chorus, after solo 3 there is probably the most groovy riff I have heard from Obituary!

Track 8 – Weaponize the Hate

Mid-tempo kicker of a riff on this, I have to mention John Tardys vocal performance, everything is so easy to hear, totally different to his earlier recordings, there is if I am not mistaken a bass drop in this song after the chorus, you definitely can hear something has been added to hit harder, this one just slams the whole way through, that slower middle section when it comes in is like hitting a brick wall, it’s so effective, and that riff that follows the drums is so signature Obituary!

Track 9 – Torn Apart

Almost like a hardcore type of riff, then we get into almost like a gallop style riff, this really reminds me of like Skinlab in terms of the riffs, it’s the drumming that takes it back into Obituary’s ball pit, the way the riff turns around after the solo with the drums is so slamming, then when we get into the riff after the drum break where it comes in then picks up, it’s so simple but so effective!

Track 10 – Be Warned

Doom, 100% this is a doom metal song crossed with Alice in Chains when you hear that little bend on the end of the guitar riff, don’t get me wrong it is 100% Obituary, the vocal delivery will confirm that, but this is just a brutally heavy slow grinding track, loving the solo and nice harmonies on it, again that might be why I am thinking AIC, there are just parts all over the place making me think of them, the way the song plays out as well, slow and deliberate with the guitar shrieks over the top of it, classic Obituary!

10 out of 10

In a way you know what you are going to get with a band that has been about for 11 albums, and I have been a fan the whole way through, however I don’t love everything they have done, but in saying that, this album is absolutely slamming from start to finish and in many ways it’s also more diverse and different than I have heard them do in a while, I loved it start to finish, go out and get it, very highly recommended!