UMUR "Entity" is the 5th full-length studio album by US death metal act Origin. The album was released in June 2011 by Nuclear Blast Records. The band have gone from a five-piece on "Antithesis (2008)" to a three-piece on "Entity". The vocals are now shared by guitarist /B>Paul Ryan and bassist Mike Flores.

The lineup changes doesn´t really affect Origin´s brutal technical death metal core sound. We´re still treated to über technical and brutal death metal of the highest class. There´s been a positive development in the songwriting department though. "Entity" is without competition the most varied and memorable release yet by Origin. While their previous releases had a tendency to appear one-dimensional after just a few tracks, it seems that Origin have focused a lot of their efforts on the songwriting this time around as opposed to the earlier releases where the focus always seemed to be on the technical playing first and memorable songwriting second. "Antithesis" did show a more diverse approach to the band´s technical brutal death metal style but still lacked the final finesse in the songwriting to push it from great to excellent. While "Entity" isn´t a flawless release either, I´d say Origin have taken one more step in the right direction with this release.

While the tracks are still brutal as hell with both deep growling and higher pitched screaming vocals on top, the band have incorporated a lot of tempo changes, heavier mid-paced groove, some (a few) melodic themes (check out the melodic solo that closes "Conceiving Death") and a bit of experimentation with ideas not regularly heard on brutal death metal releases. The latter especially appear in the track "Committed" which features a section that can be described as experimental alternative extreme metal. One of the tracks where the heavy mid-paced groove is most successfully incorporated is in "Saliga" and in "Swarm" too. There is some serious Nile worship going on in those tracks, but boy do Origin praise the lords of the Nile in a suiting manner. The 6:52 minutes long "Saliga" is definitely one of the highlights of the album. The other lengthy track on the album "Consequence of Solution", the powerful "Swarm" and "Conceiving Death" are highlights too, while some of the shorter tracks almost pass by so quick that you´ll never know what hit you. 7 out of 11 tracks are shorter than 3 minutes and most of those 7 tracks are closer to the 2 minute mark than the 3 minute ditto.

The musicianship is outstanding. Technical precision drumming, razor sharp and fast paced riffing, shredding fretboard work and rythmic variation are what you´ll get when listening to "Entity". If I have to point out a weak link it would be the vocals which are pretty standard for the genre. "Entity" could definitely have been even more interesting with a more unique sounding vocalist.

So while I still feel there is room for improvement, I think Origin have created a damn fine album in "Entity". Definitely one of the death metal highlights of the year. A 4 star rating is deserved.

UMUR "Antithesis" is the 4th full-length studio album by US death metal act Origin. The album was released in April 2008 by Relapse Records. Long known for their skillfully executed and brutal technical death metal, Origin have already proved that they are a force to be reckoned with, so it´s no surprise that "Antithesis" is another strong release by the band.

The music on the album is pre-dominantly ultra fast and blasting technical death metal. There are some slower and crushingly heavy mid-paced parts on the album too, but they are few. The vocals are deep indecipherable growls and personally I have a slight issue with the monotone delivery. I miss some aggression so it´s nice when the band decide to put in a few higher pitched screams for variation. My slight issue with the growling vocals aside "Antithesis" is a very impressive album. The riffs are played with clinical precision and technical skill that´s beyond what you´ll usually hear in an already very technical sub genre of death metal. There is no doubt that Origin are one of the fastest playing and most innovative acts when it comes to brutal technical death metal. I´ve mentioned the riffs but the drums are also supernaturally fast played and delivered with precision that´s admirable.

The sound production unfortunately lacks a bit of dynamic and the tracks have a tendency to sound a bit too much the same as a consequence of that. Especially the more "regular" blasting parts in the tracks sound a bit too similar.

Despite a few issues "Antithesis" is still in the premier league of brutal techncial death metal albums. So while I still think the band could focus a bit more on variation instead of monotone brutality, the album deserves a 3.5 - 4 star rating. When Origin chose to lower the pace or play more rythmically varied parts they shine and memorable moments even occur in the chaos of ultra fast riffing, growling vocals and blasting drums (tracks like "The Aftermath", "Wrath of Vishnu" and the title track stand out as some of the highlights). I hope they will develop that part of their sound further on subsequent releases. With a bit more variation in the songwriting department there is no limit to how great this band can become. They certainly have the technical skills to pull it off.

UMUR "A Coming Into Existence" is the sole demo recording by US death metal act Origin. The 4 track, 12 minute long demo was released in 1998 by ORIGINal Music on both CD and cassette tape.

If you are familiar with the sound of Origin, you´ll feel right at home listening to this crushingly brutal and techncially challenging death metal demo. It´s amazing how well defined the band´s sound was already this early in their career. Origin are one of those rare acts in the more brutal part of the death metal spectrum that actually has a distinct sound. Of course the band have refined and developed their core sound over the years but the 4 tracks on this demo are unmistakably the sound of Origin.

The sound production is professional and actually better than many album releases in the genre and the musicianship is absolutely excellent. Deep growling vocals delivered with punch and brutality, fast played blazing riffs and impressive technical drumming are the ingredients on the demo. "A Coming Into Existence" is a great first release by Origin and I think a 3.5 star rating is fully deserved. Maybe even a 4.

Time Signature Conceiving metal...

Genre: technical brutal death metal

Origin belong to the same category of death metal bands as Suffocation - that is, bands whose music is heavily brutal, but at the same time very technical and quite demanding to both musician and listener. It is artists like Origin and similar acts that put the nail in the coffin of the myth that brutal death metal does not require skill and musicianship. There is brutality galore on this release in the shape of lots of blastbeats and very fast double bass drum work, but contrary to the ideas that some people might get when they read this, the drumming is far from monotonous. While kept in the brutal and aggressive end of the gamut, John Longstreth makes use of several blastbeat techniques, combined with lots of different rhythmic structures and several fills, so this is by no means boring. Riffwise, the guitar work ranges from simple and brutal one-string tremolo riffage over complex and challenging guitar figures to really abstract and challenging stuff (while in the same category as Hate Eternal, I think that Origin's music is much less abstract and much more tangible, which I really appreciate). There are even a couple of groovy and thrashy riffs every now and then, which work really well. A lot of the guitar work incorporates eastern-sounding scales, which fit the brutal music very well.

Every track contains a plethora of riffs, and there are several changes as well, which means that there is a lot of dynamicity and excitement in store for the listener - but it also means that "Entity" can be a challenging listen to those who are not initiated into the world of extreme metal, and will require a couple of listens to click with some people (fortunately, it clicked with me immediately though).

The vocals are part growled and part scream-snarled (with some burpy, almost humorous-sounding things now and then), and, while not very innovative or original, the vocal style certainly suits the brutal music very well.

The musicianship on this album is very high, and "Entity" is characterized by a perfect equilibrium between brutality and technicality. It is simply a dark pearl of technical brutal death metal, and recommended to fans of the genre.

Prog Geo Fantastic album!This album has 3 basic elements:aggression,technicality(I don't like that so much) and chaos(like in all albums of Origin).James Lee's vocals are great!(I think better than the previous albums).Paul Ryan's,Jeremy Turner's and Mike Flores's screams add a more aggressive feeling to the album.The members are extremely virtuosic with their instruments(as I said before,I don't like technicality in music).There are some great riffs and breakdowns.John Longstreth's drumming is awesome(as always).He uses some gravity rolls/blasts(jazz blast beats,he is famous for this fact).

Maybe the artwork is inspired by Aliens.Nice cover!It shows well the meaning of the title.Generally the covers of Origin have sci-fi/space influences.

My favorite tracks are:The aftermath,Consuming misery(for the word "misery"),Wrath of Vishnu(indian anger),Finite(I understand why this is the single of the album)and Antithesis.

If you are a death metal fan you must hear this album.Also for every metalhead this album is appropriate.

My grade:8/10