Album Review: Obituary - Dying of Everything
Reviewed by Dan Phipps
So we all know Obituary and we know the history behind them so let’s not go over what you have heard a million times before in this review. With an extensive back catalogue they definitely are not an act who just live off their classics because in my opinion the last two full lengths are on par with their classic records prior to their initial split in 1997. So let’s see how Dying of Everything does in continuing this strong output.
Obituary know their sound, they know what makes their tracks work so you will not be shocked that Dying of Everything hardly deviates from what the band have been churning out for three plus decades. From its energetic opening ‘Barely Alive’ right through to its monstrous slow and churning finale ‘Be Warned’ Obituary churn out ten new cuts full of the trademark sound that has done the band so well over the years. From Trevor Peres laying down his customary tight rhythm tracks with Ken Andrews adding the lead work gives Dying of Everything an easy listen without being overly complex but importantly it’s also not boring.
Drummer Donald Tardy who has the fantastic ability to take whatever riffs are given to him and add a huge amount of solid groove to each track, which makes his playing on the record seem completely effortless when listening back. What is great about how the band composes their tracks is it’s so effective and that’s something I really enjoy about Obituary records and this is really no different. Of course the other instantly recognisable trait from Obituary comes from John Tardy who has one of the most recognisable vocal styles in death metal and he still sounds as good as he did back in the 80’s and 90’s. His voice is still full of power and just carries through each song. If I had to pick a fault with the album it’s simply that the bass does not come through strongly enough in the mix, and I feel that some of the slower tracks would really have a massive boost with that extra low end in there.
So in short this is an Obituary record. It’s exactly what the band have been doing since the late 80’s. It has a solid selection of tracks which are full of power and grooves. Yes you have probably heard it before from Obituary but when they are still churning out cool albums does that really matter?
