Don't count on it
Insane In The Membrane.Obsidian is a technical death metal band from Holland. This is the band's second full-length album and the follow-up to their 2006 debut "Emerging." This is the first "new" release to feature vocalist Robbe K., his first being a re-recording of their debut.
This record really picks up exactly where their debut left off, technical guitar work, frantic drumming, and guttural death metal vocals. The band still have that Meshuggah groove present in their sound, but also that influence from groups like Necrophagist or The Faceless that has a more technical riff-driven approach. This is a record that does not fail to put up some great intense tracks that blast you in the face, but on there are more apparent inclusions of other styles in here than on the debut.
What becomes more and more apparent as the album goes on is the inclusion of more progressive and melodic influences into their sound. This is still in no way a melodic death metal record, and a far cry from any sort of deathcore band, this is a band that is highly technical but is learning how to write more interesting songs. You'll find inclusions of melodic death metal, post-metal, and even progressive metal on here that certainly make this album more unique than the usual tech death band coming out. There is even a more prevalent use of clean vocals on here than on the debut as well, but they have more in common with post-metal singing than melodic metal.
There a more than a few times on this record that the speed dies down and more mellow sections or slower riffs come in to the fold to break up the monotony that may have existed, hear Radiating Light or the instrumental The Upward Spiral. Don't fret though tracks like Illuminate or Incinerate are focused more on the intense and technical side of the band. Though I personally believe that the title-track, Point of Infinity, shows the greatest leap forward for the band, demonstrating plenty of more progressive influences while maintaining an almost frantic approach to the playing.
Overall, I found this a welcome surprise to all the other technical death metal/deathcore groups coming out that all sound like The Faceless rip-offs. 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.
Highlights: Tidal Waves, Point of Infinity, Spectral Pathways
URL: http://dontcountonitreviews.blogspot.com/2010/09/obsidian-point-of-infinity.html
Overall Score: 8
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.
