Obsidian Chamber – Ein Platz am Kamin

Formed in 2003, and after a decade of hiatus since the release of their 2013 third full-length, Viennese symphonic extreme metal band Obsidian Chamber (the name is based on the Mayan mythology, which describes a room in Hell, with rotating knifes made out of obsidian to slay the doomed souls to pieces), released a teaser EP in 2023. Now, they’re back again, this time with a new singer Michael Kaiser. Alongside Michael Kaiser the remaining members of the band er Jürgen Klier (guitars & orchestra), Hannes Sandrini (bass) & Thomas Leitner (drums). With a renewed line-up, they are now starting a new adventure with the release of nine-tracker full-length entitled Ein Platz am Kamin, via Running Wild Productions.

Ein Platz am Kamin and all nine songs (plus three bonus tracks) are exceeding all my expectations. Unlike their previous EP Holzphäller, the songwriting improved a great deal, where it almost sounds as if we are dealing with another band. Yet another step in the right direction is the improved and matured vocal delivery. In other words; they listened to the critical voice upon the release of their EP, and now it seems as if they’ve corrected all mistakes from the past, with all paramters improved.

Ein Platz am Kamin is filled with some effective, delicate and shreddy lead harmonies, nice black/death/gothic rhythm guitar infusions, pompous and well-written orchestral arrangements, and the recently introduced new singer Michael Kaiser. It’s often a risky task to replace the vocalist of an established band, but in this case I think that Mr. Kaiser masters his vocal delivery, displaying a true craftsmanship, creativity, professionalism and his obvious qualities in switching from some clean and operatic to some aggressive and brutal black/death vocals. To times the guys even add some beautiful Middle Eastern/Arabic melodic flavors, as perfectly depicted in the song named, “Der beste Kebap der Stadt” (The best kebab in town). On the other hand we find songs as neck-fracturing heavy monster, “Die Grube” or the emotional and settling piano & classic metal mix in “Zausel”. The only exception from all other songs from the album is, “Es ging ein Maidlein zarte” by Johannes Brahms, which provides an opera-like break in the middle of this lengthy output. By short introduction to these three quite different songs my intenttion was to show how this band is further expanding the multicolored facets of this record.

My knowledge of German-language is limited, but from what I can understand it’s written in a nice poetic and artistic manner, while dealing with themes of human condition, love, loss and grief. The last three songs; “Dark Filthy Me”, “Heaven’s Damnation” and “Begierde”, represent the more straightforward and extreme edge of the band, and are rightfully considered as ‘bonus tracks’, due to them not quite fitting into the flow of the album.

The best thing about Ein Platz am Kamin is the strong presence of atmospheric and powerful soundscapes, which really take the listener into another dimension. Clearly, Ein Platz am Kamin has been a labor of love and should be noted & praised as such. Fans of symphonic black metal and symphonic death metal will recognize the full worth, the dynamic energy and technical skill of Obsidian Chamber on this album. Each track is full of emotion, intensity and nice humor.

The overall sound feels warm, present, clear and yet bombastic, revealing the world full of darkness and secrets, while the complicated and rich orchestration gives the music additional depth and creates a haunting and immersive soundscape. If they don’t take abother long break, I predict Obsidian Chamber certainly a bright future, with huge potential of making waves outside their local scene.

For further information on this new powerful and varied fourth full-length release from Obsidian Chamber go to https://runningwildproductions.bandcamp.com/album/ein-platz-am-kamin