Band:	Noctem
Album:	Oblivion
Style:	Melodic black metal, Death metal
Release date:	June 13, 2011
A review by:	Doc G.

01. Popol Vuh
02. The Arrival Of The False Gods
03. Universal Disorder
04. Abnegation And Brutality
05. Invictus
06. Sons Of Hun-Vucub
07. Seeking The Ruin Of Souls
08. Unredemption
09. Q'uma'rka'aa'j
10. A Borning Winged Snake
11. Oblivion

On paper, Noctem would appear to be a pretty typical extreme metal band that's somewhat ambiguous when it comes to defining it as black or death metal. Staple, tried-and-true bits are showcased in a pretty regular fashion. The funny thing is, for how typical they come across, Noctem embodies the basics of all you could want in a good ol' teeth-gnashing extreme album.

Oblivion isn't about reinventing the genre by any measure, instead it's just an album that is as evil and pissed off as possible. That might be what really sets this band apart; pure visceral ferocity. Of course, there is the obvious displays of technical prowess and the necessary distinct melodic riffs to give it that extra dash of evil, but there is no over-emphasis on being as complex as possible as seen in too much extreme metal these days. It's hard to get that feeling of pure rage across when the music sounds too calculated, which is a pitfall Noctem thankfully avoid.

Yet, this album could have been so much more. They've got the fury down, but they lack the rawness. "Raw", now, that's an easy word to toss around when reviewing an extreme metal album. No, for once I'm not talking about the production here. Yes, the production is crisp and clean, but it really fits the sharp, cold feeling Oblivion is all about. It's mostly the percussion that holds it back; it's far too drenched in triggers & click-tracking. That's what separates primal sounding albums from the machine sounding albums. Noctem were almost certainly going for the cold machine sound here, so good on 'em, they nailed it. They nailed everything else on this album, it would have been nice to see them make at least one risky side step.

Yeah, the percussion could have been a little more exciting, but overall Noctem managed to hammer out an angry-as-fuck album on all other fronts, making this another one that's worth checking out.