This is one that Ken and I wrote together. I guess you’d call Ken the new guy, but he’s been in the band for 10 years now. He did a great job on this. And my brother just did a killer job on the vocals. In the middle part, he did like a nightmare, talking-in-your-sleep kind of thing where it builds from a whisper to kind of getting mad, and then there’s a brutal sound effect on his voice when he says, ‘Your only choice is death!’” Dying Of Everything" - after such a title, it's hard to deceive yourself with any intriguing material, and especially to expect such a move from a band like Obituary, which has long entrenched itself in its comfort zone of recording too similar albums. And it, fortunately or unfortunately (more on that in a moment), works. Because regardless of the slightly different cover art (by the way, this is one of Mariusz Lewandowski's last works - the artist unfortunately died in 2022) and a longer break caused by the pandemic, "Dying Of Everything" appearing as Obituary's eleventh album almost automatically does not allow any departures from their previous releases. It's just not this one case.

Initially called Executioner, the band changed its name to Xecutioner in 1986 to avoid confusion with the thrash metal band Executioner from Boston, and then changed its name once again to Obituary in 1988. Obituary's current lineup consists of vocalist John Tardy, drummer Donald Tardy, rhythm guitarist Trevor Peres, bassist Terry Butler, and lead guitarist Ken Andrews. The band has gone through several lineup changes, with the Tardy brothers and Peres being the only constant members. Their music is based around heavily groove-based riffs and drumming along with John Tardy's growling vocals, which create their own signature sound of death metal. OBITUARY To Perform First Three Albums During Live Pay-Per-Event - May 31, 2013". Blabbermouth.net . Retrieved May 31, 2010. OBITUARY Fans Shouldn't Expect Surprises On Next Album: 'We Don't Like To Evolve Too Much' ". Blabbermouth.net. March 29, 2021 . Retrieved March 29, 2021. As the doom-laden sludgy finale of “Be Warned” provides one last hurrah, it’s incredible to reflect on the quality of a band who hit 40 years in a mere year’s time. Like many of their peers, Obituary’s ethos is simple. Enjoyment. “I think it comes down to passion,” John offers. “I say this all the time, but if something’s not fun, I’m not gonna do it. And we’re having more fun than ever.” Dying Of Everything features cover art by Mariusz Lewandowski, the Polish painter whose stunning work has appeared on albums by Rogga Johansson, Morgue Supplier, Psycroptic and Abigail Williams, to name just a few, but who sadly died unexpectedly in 2022. “He did a fantastic job on the artwork,” John reflects, “but he passed away not long after he did our album cover. I think our cover art might’ve been the last thing he did.”

On The Go

Massive riffs, tortured howls, thrashy old school death and doomy stomps through poisonous swamps of filth… The riffs flow like a swollen river, unstoppable, relentless. The band once more intersperse their crushing, slower style with bursts of thrashing intensity. The music is instantly memorable, hooking into the brain and digging in deep. “Barely Alive” is demonic, a frantic rager that will stir the pits into an absolute frenzy in the live setting. It’s got the Buzzsaw guitar sound, John Tardy’s gravel-soaked vocals, some lovely thrash metal breakdowns, and enough energy to power an entire city. It is some opening. Rivadavia, Eduardo (November 1, 2018). "11 Florida Death Metal Albums You Need". Loudwire.com . Retrieved June 1, 2020.

Asked what fans can expect from the new LP, John said: "I think it's just gonna sound like OBITUARY. [ Laughs] You know us — we're kind of cavemen; we don't like to evolve too much. We like to change it up and do a little here and there, but we're getting too old to change too much, I think. So as long as it's heavy and pounding, then that's what you can expect." The official music video for the LP's first single, "The Wrong Time", directed by Odd Life Studios, can be seen below. Major respect is due to Obituary considering how it's almost 40 years and nothing on this album feels forced, and nothing is lazy or awkward either. Very few bands can keep up this level of solid quality and listenable songwriting for 45 minutes straight when they're this old. I get a clear sense that the band and the recording staff all took the album totally seriously while in the studio. Former Obituary Bassist Frank Watkins Dies At 47". Blabbermouth.net. October 18, 2015 . Retrieved October 19, 2015. Obituary - Obituary and Relapse Records Join Forces; Band Finalizing New Album - Relapse Records". saladdaysmag.com. June 9, 2014 . Retrieved October 24, 2020.

Dying of Everything Videos

Amanda Hatfield (November 10, 2022). "Obituary announce new LP 'Dying of Everything,' share "The Wrong Time" (exclusive vinyl)". BrooklynVegan . Retrieved November 10, 2022. Moving on from the songs, I'd like to discuss the album's production. It's surprisingly natural for a modern death metal record, and it's not overproduced. It's not a raw record at all, but the production is solid. The instantly recognizable Obituary guitar tone roars and takes the limelight on this album, sounding like Cause of Death from an alternate reality. The bass cuts through for the most part as well, though it isn't the album's main attraction. The drums are rather "blunt" (as previously stated) and, while present, sound a bit quiet in the mix. What the hell happened to our planet?” Obituary drummer Donald Tardy asked himself at the height of the pandemic. The conclusion he arrived at, he decided, was a worthy title for their eleventh studio release. “Dying Of Everything seems like a proper name for this point in history,” he says. “I think it just fits with what everybody has been going through these last two years.”

Yardley, Miranda (August 24, 2012). "The Terrorizer Friday Death Metal Top 15". Terrorizer.com . Retrieved June 1, 2020. There is a limit to how good the end product gets though. Most melodies are very very simple, and it's Obituary's trademark, but so much simplicity did bring me to Mediocre Town for a few moments. Keeping it simple has brought them a solid fanbase and a discography with no major mistakes, but I also started hearing how their songwriting stays so amazingly far away from taking risks. After all these years, can't they envision doing something just a tiny bit weird and envision it working out well? In theory this album isn’t anything crazy; while it does somewhat combine Obituary’s old style with their new style (I would make the argument that this would make a better self-titled album than the one that was released in 2017) both styles are still very meat-and-potatoes, and at the end of the day fusing them together just gets you more meat-and-potatoes, albeit still being a refreshing change to their newer output. The album cover testifies a lot to this fusion of old and new, following the “ominous landscape” format found on classic Obituary records like “Cause of Death”, “The End Complete”, “World Demise”, and “Frozen in Time”, but with a more modern surrealist twist. Focusing more on the music, while on paper this album may be more-or-less business as usual for Obituary, in execution is where this album really shines and improves upon what was already so great about Obituary’s self-titled album. OBITUARY Is 'Knee Deep In Writing New Music', Says DONALD TARDY". Blabbermouth.net. October 15, 2020 . Retrieved October 15, 2020. Following “Barely Alive” is “The Wrong Time” which is probably the album’s catchiest song, appropriately released as a lead single and best exemplifying Obituary’s strongest and most pronounced qualities. The chorus is easy to follow along with, the main riff is steady and engaging, and the aesthetic still feels very much dripping in old school grime.Dying Of Everything destroys in the time-honored tradition of early OBITUARY classics Slowly We Rot and Cause of Death while maintaining the killer studio sound that the band has been perfecting in their own studio since 2007’s monstrous Xecutioner’s Return. I think it comes down to passion," vocalist John Tardy offers. "I say this all the time, but if something's not fun, I'm not gonna do it. And we're having more fun than ever." a b "OBITUARY: New Album Title Revealed - July 28, 2014". Blabbermouth.net . Retrieved July 29, 2014. Propelled by the inhuman vocals of John Tardy, the obscenely brutal guitar tone of Trevor Peres and rhythmic brilliance of drummer Donald Tardy, Obituary redefined heaviness throughout the 1990s. From undisputed classics Slowly We Rot and Cause of Death, through an unexpected hiatus to their current creative renaissance, Obituary have pioneered, defined and expanded extreme metal, becoming one of the underground’s most recognized and respected acts." - Decibel Magazine Following the release of their self-titled album in 2017, which stands as one of their best works, it was interesting to see how Obituary would continue on with that sound...and this album is quite different. That's not a bad thing obviously, it's way better for a band to make an album that stands out on it's own rather than writing a direct continuation of their previous work and letting the rest of their discography fall into irrelevance, and the Florida death metal legends seem to have learned that lesson well by now. With six years between releases, it seems like they used their time well.