Opprobrium (Incubus) "Beyond the Unknown" Cassette Asia version!!

Roots Active Productions / Licensed from High Roller Records
Import, clear cassette. Only 200 Manufactured (24 Copies For North America Only) Collect It While It Lasts!

This album was originally released under the band name of Incubus in 1990. It is their follow up to the 1988 debut Serpent Temptation.
In my opinion Beyond the Unknown incorporates more of a death metal sound than their debut while still having some thrash influences present. Many of the guitar riffs on here are extremely fast and somewhat intricate as well as very technical at times. But most importantly they are quite memorable. The lead work on here measures up to the same standard of being fast, intricate, technically masterful, and unforgettable.
The drumming is very tight and compliments the often speedy guitar riffs. The drummer keeps time very well with these speed laden rhythms. Also, there are a lot of skillful tempo changes throughout the album. Most of the songs go from chaotically fast yet precise guitaring to chunky mid-paced rhythms and successfully transition from one to another very smoothly.
The vocals are a nice median between thrash shouts and grunted death metal growls which suits the music quite well since the style is a hybrid of death and thrash metal. My favorite songs on here are the title track, Freezing Torment, and Mortify. Also, the song Massacre of the Unborn takes a strong moral stance against abortion and in my opinion is a pro-life anthem for the death metal genre.
The production is very clean, loud, and nearly flawless. The guitar tone is very crisp and comes through the speakers more clearly than most any death/thrash release from 1990. However, the bass kind of gets buried in the mix.
This is a must have for people who like old school death metal with some thrash thrown into the mix. It would be nearly impossible for fans of this subgenre to be at all disappointed with this somehow underrated death/thrash masterpiece.

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