Review Summary: Inquisition continues to create solid music. While it’s nothing new, one cannot deny that’s it’s quite tasty.
It’s been about 3 years since Inquisition released their last LP Ominous Doctrines of the Perpetual Mystical Macrocosm and they’ve had plenty of time to focus on song-writing and enhancing their expressions. We now have Obscure Verses for the Multiverse[OVFTM] and clearly they’re still creating solid music with smooth passages and transitions that are inviting and enticing. Fans of death and black metal will find themselves quite at home here. With OVFTM Inquisition favors the balancing of harmonizing/melodic black metal riffs with the common flare of black metal passages such as tremolos and blast beats. In some cases more attention to accessibility seems to be present here such as the catchy “Darkness Flows Towards Unseen Horizons” which is a track that starts with very accessible, almost Pantera-like riff which is quickly transitioned into blast beats. The guitar work of Dagon is still up to par and he nails atmosphere solos like nothing. In fact, “Darkness Flows Towards Unseen Horizon” is a great introductory track for anyone interested in checking out this band.
It’s impossible to discuss OVFTM without mentioning how fitting the production is with the music that is present within it. Everything is balanced perfectly and just the right amount of dissonance is given to layers such as solos and harmonies found in the title track. Crushing riffs sit on ears favorably without any need for user volume adjustments. One thing I’d like to see differently about the song-writing, however, is for Inquisition to work on not repeating riffs in a chorus bridge format. I believe attention to those types of details will allow them to expand their sound with future releases. But don’t get me wrong more of any good riff can’t necessarily be a bad thing. Fortunately, the actual differences in tracks are great enough to overlook any repeating of riffs. “Spiritual Plasma Evocation” starts with a mid-paced tempo while it’s following track “Master of the Cosmological Black” immediately kicks into high gear with fast paced double bass drumming and alternate riffing which varies greatly from its predecessor.
The vocals of Dagon are another element that can’t be overlooked. Naturally, Dagon sounds like Abbath from Immortal in almost every respect. And since Abbath has been described as sounding like a frog or a croaking toad we can only put that same tag on Dagon but this is by no means a bad thing. It’s just a way to describe his differences from other vocalists. Dagon does a great job in this department as well and I may even go as far as saying that he has more of a range than Abbath as he can hit lower notes as well as high-pitched shrieks. The drum work of Incubus, as mentioned earlier, is top notch for this style of music and while Incubus doesn’t try to outdo his contemporaries his styles and patterns always seems to fit the music perfectly and I have confidence that he can create the perfect lick for any guitar riff that Dagon may come up with. Do yourself a favor and check out this release. It may not be anything ground breaking but Inquisition continues to create solid music with their unique sound.
