Review by JD on June 4, 2012.

I love it when I get a Canadian band to review, as my fellow countrymen (or women too) often surprise me with the talent we seem to have here in the Great White Way. Ottawa’s Obduracy come to me, highly touted and creating a massive buzz in their area. Let us see if all of the hype is warranted or not.

Combining booming Death Metal with the pinpoint precision of Progressive Metal is hard, and Obduracy is doing just that. Striking that balance with the brutality of Suffocation with the melodies of Megadeth or even some Opeth to a degree... this young band is showing some musical fire. Musically, they are solid and bold, thanks to a band that can play fucking hard, vocally they are a little lacking due to some very disappointing recording choices they made that makes the vocals drop in the mix.

I was impressed with every song delivered with a passion that comes across so crystal clear and looming with powerful melodies, especially because the band is generally a new outfit and has such talent. I think my favorite tune on the whole album has to be the aggressive wall of heaviness that is 'Interstate Murder Plot'. A chaos inducing bloody tale that is set on a Richter scale bending heavy riffs that could set off a earthquake that is beyond a force of nature.

With a little seasoning by touring like mad outside of Ontario, along with getting themselves a good producer that could coax out every ounce of talent the band has when they enter the studio again, Obduracy will be a band to showcase Canadian Metal. They will be an act that the world metal order will support.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship:8.5
Atmosphere: 8.5
Production: 6.5
Originality: 8.5
Overall: 8

Rating: 8.0 out of 10