March of the Obsequious

Tad Morose has been chugging along for years now releasing mostly solid albums – even if they never seemed to get back to the level of their trinity of albums with Urban breed in the late 90s and early ‘00s. But I enjoy this kind of dark, heavy melodic metal, so more’s always welcome. This is probably the strongest of the new albums so far, mostly just coming down to the pared-down runtime. These are short songs that get to the point, and the band has written a bunch of their best tunes in years here.

They haven’t changed all that much since Modus Vivendi and these songs are all pretty bare bones, with a general tight, clinical riffing sense, dark, obscure atmosphere and choruses that come at you like spirits rising up from a fucking grave with a vengeance. The difference here is in the quality – while the opening title track sounds like every other song the band ever wrote, after that they do kick into a run of pretty stellar tunes. Check the nifty melodies of “Witches Dance,” the kinetic “Phantasm,” the epic “Dying” and the massive chorus of “Escape” – these are among their coolest tunes in years, and unlike the other recent albums there’s no real filler. Closer “This Perfect Storm” is even kinda fresh for them – a sonorous, haunting number with a kind of dark triumphant vibe to the excellent chorus.

Ronny Hemlin has never been a favorite singer of mine but he works these songs well, with a better sense of dynamic these days, not so much aimless wailing. He does have a lot of charisma. The rest of the band sounds as pro as you’d expect, with guitarist Christer Andersson, the lone remaining original member, just having a great feel for massive grooves and stomping riffwork. It’s all just fucking solid. If you’re a fan of Tad Morose or of no bullshit dark power metal, March of the Obsequious ought to be a safe bet for a buy.