OBSCURA — Retribution (review)

OBSCURA — Retribution album cover Album · 2006 · Technical Death Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
Time Signature
None shall be spared...

Genre: brutal death metal

Obscura have been all the rage since the release of 2009's "Cosmogenesis" and the recent release of "Omnivium" has further placed them solidly among the giants of tech/prog metal. Their debut, however, is considered weak by many, and compared to the second and third album, I can understand why it is considered weak.

"Retribution" certainly is very different from "Cosmogenesis" and "Omnivium". It sounds like a completely different band. And, in a way, it is: with the exception of Steffen Kummerer, the line-up is a completely different one, and it is very clear that the creative genius of Christian Münzer and Hannes Grossmann has not graced this album. The style on this album is much more brutal and much less refined than on the subsequent albums(it's still somewhat technical, though).

So, yes, in a way, compared to the band's two "hit" albums, "Retribution" may seem weak. But, in itself, I do not this it's weak. I like how brutal the music is, without it being to much, and I think that there is a lot of really cool classic death metal riffage on the album, which is absent from the later albums. And many of the tracks are pretty awesome - especially "Exit Life" and "Sentiment" both of which draw on more primitive and aggressive old school death metal, combining it with influences from Death.

Productionwise, "Retribution" is less polished and more raw than the subsequent albums, but I kind of like that. Its sound is slightly reminiscent of the Scott Burns Morrisound production of the 90s (but more updated, of course).

So, yes, it's not like the other Obscura albums, but I do not think it deserves its status as "the weak Obscura album" - "the different Obscura album" is fairer. But, it is also fair, to the fans, to inform them that they will not find the progressive and technical Obscura that they know from "Cosmogenesis" and "Omnivium".

Fans of classic death metal might be interested to know that this album features a cover version of Death's "Lack of Comprehension". The reissue version also features cover versions of "Synthetically Revived" (Suffocation) and "God of Emptiness" (Morbid Angel, while the Japanese version also contains cover versions of "Decade ov Therion" (Behemoth) and "Wings" (Vader).
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