The New Review
Obsidian burst through the door with all guns blazing on Point of Infinity. Opening track “Illuminate” begins with a monstrous roar and a tech-death onslaught that could be compared to Beneath the Massacre, but much more organic. The song continues on in this vein, bordering a few times on deathcore with some sharp breakdowns, until about 3:25. At this point a moodier riff takes over and some emotional clean vocals come soaring in on top of it. This caught me completely by surprise, as it is very rare that bands having such a brutal forefront ever opt to go so far into the softer end of the spectrum.Track two, “Breach” starts of in the modern death metal camp again, but a little over a minute in, the cleans resurface, this time doubling with the growls. Next up is a progressive section with some interesting double guitar work.
These twists and turns give a good overall impression of Obsidian’s sound. Along with the obvious grab bag of tech-death influences, they also have an unmistakable Meshuggah lean, as well as some subtle Deftones sounds here and there. They manage to mix the emotional with the brutal in a way that is almost as effective as Britain’s Viatrophy (Obsidian themselves are from Amsterdam).
The main challenge to any listener engaging with Point of Infinity is to stay alert and change gears at the same time as the music does. Although most of the transitions from brutal to moody are smooth, if this album is being used as a background track to another activity, the flow can get lost. In some ways it feels like so much work was put into making the different genre elements work together that at times actual songwriting was left behind. Some of the tracks, such as “Tidal Waves” just feel like a long string of riffs and parts. Others though, like title-track “Point Of Infinity”, are very engaging and effective.
Obsidian are working an angle not too many bands have the guts to try. If you can keep an open mind you’ll enjoy Point Of Infinity.
URL: http://thenewreview.net/reviews/obsidian-point-of-infinity
Rating: 3,5 / 5
metal.it
Il nuovo Point of Infinity si presenta come un album sorprendentemente maturo, considerata la "freschezza" della band.
Mega Metal
Klarer Fall - "Point of infinity" muss man sich erarbeiten. Die Belohnung ist dafür umso höher.
Aardschok
De extremen liggen ditmaal nog verder uit elkaar en de onderliggende melodieen komen pas na meerdere luisterbeurten volledig aan de oppervlakte, waardoor P.O.I. over enkele maanden nog steeds even fris zal overkomen.
The Pit
Die Jungs schaffen es geschickt, atmosphärische, ruhige Progressive-Passagen mit aggressiven Tech-Death-Anstürmen zu verbinden und beweisen dabei auf imposante Art und Weise ihr musikalisches Talent.
Metal Italia
gettandolo contro granitici muri di suono, immergendolo in una plumbea coltre di nebbia, con atmosfere alienanti, talvolta rarefatte, altre volte acquose, sempre costantemente ipnotiche e terribilmente trascinanti
Rock Tribune
Doordachte syncopen en op en neer springende polyritmes geven aan het geheel een progressieve toets, terwijl op de achtergrond toch wordt opgebouwd door groovy en heavy ritmes die er tegenaan beuken.
The New Review
Obsidian are working an angle not too many bands have the guts to try. If you can keep an open mind you’ll enjoy Point Of Infinity.
Don't count on it
This album is a solid leap forward for the band, and a record that they should feel proud of having made. If you like technical/progressive death metal, definitely check this out.
Queens of steel
Prometen abrir un nuevo horizonte nunca antes explorado en la escena contemporánea o, al menos, no de la forma en la que ellos lo hacen la cual es, realmente, difícil de imitar.
Metalpulse
Now with a more mature, tighter sound, Obsidian are sure to evolve onto the who’s who list of the metal underground.
