Band:	Obtest
Album:	Iš Kartos Į Kartą
Style:	Pagan folk metal
Release date:	September 2005

01. Paskutinė Akimirka
02. Devyniaragis
03. Iš Kartos Į Kartą
04. Pergalė
05. Griausmavaldys
06. Audronaša
07. Burtai
08. Pirmyn!
09. Suminti Juodi Takai

Lithuania saves the day

Today we're digging into the Baltic Metal scene, and our subject is Pagan Metal outfit Obtest. Hailing from Lithuania Obtest has earned a reputation on the underground Metal scene, the band started as a Brutal Death Metal band and then they changed their style to Black Metal, then the folk elements gained control of the mix and the direct result of years of evolution is this: "Is Kartos I Karta", translated to "From Generation To Generation".

Can't really classify this as Black Metal tough, the influences are a little scarce by now, the predominant side consist of galloping rhythms all through the album, the clean yet raspy vocals, the catchy and folky guitar lines and even some subtle punk influences (or so I think so).

These guys sing in their native language, which is a wise decision, since the language go perfectly with the mood of the album, the production is also quite good, every instrument has its place and the mix is quite very well balanced, giving the album that warm, crisp sound.

Ok, this sounds too perfect to be so unknown, it has some flaws like the lack of slower acts or even mid-paced ones, everything is quite straight forward in this record, nevertheless this actually works if you really hook yourself in the songs, if you fail to do it so, you might find it a little repetitive.

I really think Obtest has accomplished something here, I never heard such a mix of different influences in a record, thus making this an truly original record. This makes me think that not everything has been done in Metal yet, for the unbelievers, grab this record immediately and check out this little masterpiece from Lithuania.