OBSCURE INFINITY (ger) - Dawn of Winter - CD

Reissue of the first full album from Germany's Obscure Infinity. Crushing and sinister death metal with the ancient vibe. Death metal the way it was meant to be. Highly recommended for fans of GRAVE, ASPHYX, DEATH, UNLEASHED, SADISTIC INTENT!

Voices from the Darkside:
This was quite a surprise, since I was so stupid to expect a compilation of the Swedish oldschool Death Metal namesake. After a well done moody intro 'Summoning Of The Ancient Ones', which suits the occult and majestic atmosphere just fine, 'Sacrifical Ritual' sets in and hell yes it's Death Metal and hell yeah it's oldschool! Actually, it sounds so damn oldschool, it's ancient! Founded in the beginning of 2007 by Jules (vocals) and Stefan (guitars), they've already released a demo called "Into The Depths Of Infinity" in 2008 which I haven't heard but I'm almost sure I missed something great because in the way they play, these guys are passionately devoted to obscure and underground Death Metal. The bio mentions they're influenced by UNLEASHED, DEATH, PESTILENCE, OBITUARY, AUTOPSY, MORGOTH etc. Well, some of them you'll recognize in their sound, but as soon as 'Sacrifical Ritual' started a similar atmosphere of more barbaric bands like EMBRACE OF THORNS, MIASMA, old BELPHEGOR, VERMINOUS etc. manifested my headphones. Expecting the same rawness as these bands unleash, I was wrong again, since OBSCURE INFINITY incorporates elements from Black and Thrash Metal in an excellent way!! Sometimes it's majestically powerful and dramatic like THE CHASM, INFINITUM OBSCURE and DISSECTION on tracks like on 'Transmitting Life To Darkness' and 'Weak Havoc - A Blackened Mind', sometimes the music sounds like the new generation of Black Thrashers like NOCTURNAL GRAVES, GOSPELS OF THE HORNS and others, like on 'Incinerator'. 'In The Depths Of Below' even reminded me a lot of SADISTIC INTENT because of an awesome groovy main riff. 'Morbid Ways Of God' even added a twisted REPUGNANT swing. The riffs that Stefan and Florian unleash upon us are very effective and classic! Not original, you might think, but let me crush that remark immediately by the fact that it doesn't need to be original when it forms such an awesome release! On top of that, "Dawn Of Winter" contains some very cool midtro's 'Foreshadowning Of A Coming Storm' and 'The Firmament Breathes Eternal Tranquillity' and some excellent solos!! Vocalist Jules has a lovely Deathgrowl, supported by occasional screams and whispering. Drummer Oli knows just perfectly how to keep things balanced. His style is not technical but spontaneous and very capable to handle the different styles of the music. No matter what direction they choose, in every way it gets a firm grip on you and won't let go! These guys are here for dedication and quality so what do you want more? Support the guys!! Get "Dawn Of Winter" if you're into aforementioned bands and likes. The only remark I can find on "Dawn Of  Winter" is the long songtitles that contribute to this quite long review. Definitely a must have record and a very significant player in the German (and international) scene!