I haven’t listened to Obscura in its entirety for a while, but I remembered it having lots of extended techniques, although I do put on “nostalgia” from time to time as it’s a legit banger.

I think the reason is exactly what you’re pointing out; it’s a dense , tiring slog of an album, but it’s extremely innovative and a pinnacle of tech death, which is what it’s meant to be. Which makes it a dense, tiring album, since it’s constantly loud, dissonant , abrasive and unsettling. Which is what it’s supposed to be.

I should give it another listen soon.

EDIT : Probably why the gorguts album I hit up most often is wisdom to hate, while less groundbreaking, it’s a hell of a lot more easy to listen to.

Maybe some more consonant and quieter sections would have made obscura easier to listen to all in one go. But it wouldn’t be the same thing.

EDIT 2 : I put the album on, and nostalgia came on. The fucking chorus riff is so fucking awesome. Ban banan Dan Ban dabananan da da na,

EDIT 3 : finished listening it to it again. yeah, you’re right. . it’s a headache inducing atmosphere of opression and what you felt is normal. 9/10 would praise and listen to once every couple of years to hear interesting musical ideas