Obituary

The death metal veterans in Obituary have returned once again with a new release that's nothing short of what's expected from one of Florida's forefathers of the genre. Darkest Day is the band's third release since reuniting and it exemplifies Obituary's traditional sound, which they've maintained for two decades. Right from the start, with album opener "List of Dead," Darkest Day displays the tried and true Obituary formula: pummelling drums, brutal vocals, heavy riffs and melodic guitar solos. Donald Tardy's drumming is at times, the strongest element on the album but on tunes like "Outside My Head" and "Fields of Pain" the dual guitar work by Ralph Santolla and Trevor Peres takes centre stage. "Lost" also features extremely heavy chugging riffs with a lot of groove, while "This Life" showcases vocalist John Tardy's agony-entrenched screams. The bottom line is if you like Obituary's previous material, you'll definitely like this album.