Allegations of plagiarism, as well as the fact that it is the fourth Obscura album – and the second consecutively – to feature a completely different line-up around vocalist and guitarist Steffen Kummerer, caused many people to have an opinion on ‘A Sonication’ before even having heard any of the music. Don’t get me wrong: plagiarism allegations are something to be taken very seriously. But a lot of what is being written about the album barely says anything about how it sounds. Whoever wrote the material here, ‘A Sonication’ might be my favorite Obscura album in terms of songwriting since drummer Hannes Grossman left over a decade ago.

Nobody will mistake the progressive death metal on ‘A Sonication’ for anything other than Obscura. On the surface, it sounds more traditionally Obscura than its overtly melodic predecessor ‘A Valediction‘. And yet, it has a very different feel. The music feels a bit more futuristic and spacey than before. The way the lead guitar parts truly envelop the listener is very specific for ‘A Sonication’. The relatively straightforward ‘Evenfall’ would not have sounded out of place on a Hypocrisy album if it wasn’t for the fretless bass parts by Robin Zielhorst, which is a reference I never thought I would make for an Obscura album.

Opening with ‘Silver Linings’ was a wise choice, as it sounds most like people would expect Obscura to sound. After that, the songs are great, but the album really starts cooking about halfway through. I absolutely love the surprisingly melodic instrumental ‘Beyond the Seventh Sun’ and the melancholic intensity of the following ‘Stardust’. ‘The Prolonging’ also houses a surprisingly large number of cool melodic ideas for its two minutes of running time, while the lengthy title track that closes the album has all the drama a final chapter for an album like this should have.

There is one thing I have an issue with, however, and that is the production of ‘A Sonication’. The album just blasts by at what feels like the exact same volume, and it would not surprise me if the dynamic range is below 1 dB. Which is fine if you play full-on extreme metal the whole time, but Obscura’s song material is simply too dynamic for that. As a result of the production, I tend to end up zoning out a bit throughout the second half of the album. Which should not be the case, as that’s where the best songs of the album generally are.

With a better production job, ‘A Sonication’ probably would have made my top three Obscura albums. It perfectly blends the aggression of death metal, the intricate musicianship and the unpredictable songwriting of progressive metal, and the compact, hooky songs of more melodic styles of metal. And that was always Obscura’s strength. The sole reason why they are one of the very few progressive death metal bands I unequivocally like is their songwriting, and there is plenty of good songwriting on ‘A Sonication’. Don’t let any of the potentially justified drama surrounding the release of the album keep you from hearing that.

Recommended tracks: ‘Beyond the Seventh Sun’, ‘Stardust’, ‘The Prolonging’