Obtest latest album, Is Kartos Į Karta, turned me into a shock somehow. Their (Lithuanian) way of composing music was a total new experience to me which I could hardly place within the boundaries of metal I was familiar with that day. Thank god there is a follow-up available right now. Imagine my curiosity.

 

Right after the first melodies are passing by, I remember why Obtest has been in my memories for a long time. The heavy metal songs are of a very, very high quality, both in a technical and original way. Thanks to a great production, with the guitar slightly on the foreground, the music is easy to listen to and the epical atmosphere of the songs is intensively sensible. Yet, the dark side I felt attached to at first remains present.
 

Whereas Is Kartos Į Karta took me into an unfamiliar, dark side of heavy metal, Gyvybes Medis relies more on the pagan or even progressive elements. Probably the best example is the title song which passes by unhasted with great melodic guitar loops. Furthermore, the band takes its time to change riffs which you feel like every compisition is well thought off. Try for instance Sakolo Vikai which is available on their MySpace, where the musical intermezzo shows a rarely seen control of composing songs.
 

Vocal wise one might be a little sceptical. The lyrics are in their native language and the main vocals are pretty raw (supported by cleaner backing vocals). Personally I had to get used to these kind of vocals but fans of pagan or viking metal like Manegarm or foreign lyrics as in Mokoma sure know how to interpret this.
 

So, after having closely listened to two albums, it seems that Obtest is starting to become one of those bands I‘ve come to cherish which wouldn‘t have been possible without this website. So if you, for any reason, are looking for a new band to add to your musical catalogue......you know what to do.