Possessed - Revelations of Oblivion (2019)
Members:
Jeff Becerra – vocals
Emilio Márquez – drums
Daniel Gonzalez – guitar
Robert Cardenas – bass
Claudeous Creamer – guitar
This album was initially set for release in 2018, but was delayed. On March 15, 2019, the album title was revealed as Revelations of Oblivion, and it was released on 10 May 2019 (on Nuclear Blast Records), making it Possessed's first full album in 33 years. The album entered the UK Rock & Metal Singles and Albums Charts at #7 in its first week.
First Impressions:
Well, this was a surprise I really didn't see coming.
My first experience with Possessed came from a compilation cassette I got for free at Camelot records. This compilation had tracks from a lot of bands I knew of or became a fan of through it, bands like Death, Voivod, Dark Angel, Heathen, Agent Steel, and quite a few more. But among these tracks was a song called "Confessions" by this band and it just blew me away only 2 other songs on this tape had the same effect but this one stuck just a bit more. It was aggressive and grating in a way that just made you want to break things. The vocals and lyrics were just amazing and above all it was just relentless. I found out shortly after from a friend that this track was on an EP called "The Eyes of Horror" and he just so happened to have this and their other 2 albums in his collection, so he let me borrow them for a couple days. What I experienced was a true game changer for me in terms of my music taste. This band was raw and dark, plus it had this guttural feeling like it crawled straight from the depths of hell itself. This was my first taste of what would help create a much broader and more vicious genre of metal...DEATH METAL. Now quickly on that, there are those that see this band as the first real death metal band but from my perspective I never saw them as that, they were proto types for the genre along with a few other bands at that time, and they helped lay the foundation for what became death metal...however, Possessed deserves far more credit than that simply because they took an existing form of metal and mutated it into a solitary trademark sound and style all their own, a sound that influenced generations of death metal and thrash metal bands that came later. But, I digress....let's get back to this particular album. Now, I know Jeff, I've known him for quite a number of years in fact, but knowing that don't expect this review to be an ass kissing session, this will be done in an honest way with as little bias as I can do. But when this album hit I honestly wasn't expecting it...now Jeff did hint at it and dance around it for a while but when it was on point for release I was surprised, he started pitching it all over social media and when I knew it was really gonna hit, my mind flashed back to those days when I first heard this band, and I got all stoked up for it...but now that it is out, and has been for a while now, was it worth the 3 decade wait? Well let's get out our exorcism kits and make this beast confess its sins, track by track as always....Let's Do This!!!
1. "Chant Of Oblivion" 1:54
Your basic intro track that sets up the mood for the album. Church bells and chanting and some kinda horror movie symphonic music...makes me want to watch an old horror movie.
2. "No More Room In Hell" 4:48
And now the chaos begins, pure aggression and that trademark Becerra vocal style that hasn't changed since "Eyes of Horror". This is a furious whirlwind of a track, it just doesn't let up for a second. The guitars on this thing just slice through the production on this and assaults your ears in a very satisfying way. This is a great track and shows this band hasn't missed a beat.
3. "Dominion" 4:25
This one shows off what I believe about this band. They are more than others label them. This track has a great thrash foundation where other much darker elements are added. This track has a groove to it that sets it apart from the crop of what people would label as Death Metal these days. This is a track that would be at home on any of their albums.
4. "Damned" 5:01
Another one that is a beast, it starts by slow plodding your senses then just cutting into your very soul. This bludgeonfest of a track is one of those songs that you need to listen to be couple times to dissect it, there is a bit more going on here than a single listen could reveal. It is very aggressive and for me, that is a very good thing.
5. "Demon" 5:16
I don't care what others say, this band wears its bay area thrash roots on its sleeve...now if it's intentional, I don't know but this (and many other songs by this group) really puts it in front of you. The dark and aggressive twist to it is there as well and that is this bands unique signature. More Death Metal bands need to do this, Possessed is a progression from their roots, they add to it and complement those roots but never deny they are there...this track really shows that whole story.
6. "Abandoned" 5:21
More pounding and head cracking...this band just loves to throw a barrage of concepts and sounds at you. This one is a "face melter" in the purest sense. The whole thing is just relentless in its tempo and Jeff just forces out the lyrics like they are going to be his last words. There is a slightly slower part in the middle that kinda reminds me of early Sodom and that is never a bad thing. Even in that slower part this track is still punishing. This is a brilliant piece of aggressive metal (whatever sub genre you want to call it). I really dig this one, I really really do.
7. "Shadowcult" 4:44
Now Jeff pitched this track for quite a bit on social media and I was very curious about it. This track has a "Beyond the Gates" feel to it mostly. Can't say much more than that, that album had its own presence to it and this track echoes that very presence. Its not overly complicated structurally but it just doesn't let up for a second. I really enjoy how this track feels. It just feels right.
8. "Omen" 6:41
Oh boy....more church bells. Has Jeff been listening to too much Cradle of Filth? This one really has a Cradle feel to it...that could work both for and against them but knowing Jeff, he doesn't care about that much. This is a very dynamic track and presents the listener with a nice sonic landscape to explore, but the aforementioned elephant in the room is the Cradle type structure this one has. It's ambitious to be sure and it works on this album as a whole but it does come a bit out of left field.
9. "Ritual" 4:47
Nice aggressively creepy riffage starts this one....then comes the sledgehammer to the face. Damn this track just pummeled you into submission, it shares a "Seven Churches" quality on its relentless aggression and shows off more of the Death Metal side of the band structurally. This is a brutal song that makes its point in the 4:47 it has, then it leaves what's left of you to twitch in your agony...this track is that brutal and ends that suddenly....it's beautiful.
10. "The Word" 5:09
Fade in and sound like a Norwegian black metal band...this track does just that in its own way at first then it goes into a more typical Possessed style. What Jeff and company has done so far on this album is actually refreshing. They cross boundaries and just use whatever makes their songs unique. I hear things that would work on albums from bands like Immortal, Trypticon, and Xentrix...just bits and pieces and in this track they all work very well together. If more bands in this genre did stuff like this, nobody could call the genre boring. Well done guys....very well done.
11. "Graven" 4:19
This one received a video (viewable below by the way) and deservedly so. If any song on here could be a poster boy for the whole album, this is it. It encompasses a lot of the components that are the core of this album. This track in particular is just ball bustingly aggressive and punchy. It is coarse and evil but very well executed in every way that matters for this particular genre. Nice vocal presence with a very demanding undertone to it...you had better bet this track was designed to fill this albums Satan quota as well, because he is mentioned all over this one and what a glorious thing it is here.
12. "Temple Of Samael" 1:50
The closer...another soundscape with an acoustic guitar laid over it to aid in the desolate feeling to it. Nice way to close out a very good multi faceted album.
Conclusion:
Well 33 years is a long time between full releases and one would wonder of the band would actually make something worthy of their original legacy...did Possessed pull that task off? I would say, yes. Not that this album is perfect, it really isn't. It has its fair share of odd inconsistencies and production quirks that kind of take from the intentions behind some of the songs, but as a whole experience this is a great album and fits along side its other brethren albums very well...it mostly feels like an evolution off the last EP "The Eyes of Horror" and even goes into even older territory at times while also presenting some fresher ideas for the band. Now if this is followed up in the near future is anyone's guess, but if it follows the same pattern as this one...it will also be a gem, and well worth the time invested in it.
Score: 4.5/5
No comments:
Post a Comment