Cause of Death (album)
Cause of Death is the second album by American death metal band Obituary. It was released on September 19, 1990. Cause of Death is considered a classic album in the history of death metal.[2] The artwork was done by artist Michael Whelan. It is their first release with longtime member Frank Watkins on bass, and also their first and only album with guitarist James Murphy, previously of the group Death. Murphy did not contribute to the songwriting as the riffs he showed to the band would end up appearing on Disincarnate's Dreams of the Carrion Kind.[3]
| Cause of Death | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 19, 1990 | |||
| Recorded | 1990 at Morrisound Recording, Tampa, Florida | |||
| Genre | Death metal | |||
| Length | 41:02 | |||
| Label | Roadrunner | |||
| Producer | Scott Burns and Obituary | |||
| Obituary chronology | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    |
The cover art of this album was used in an H. P. Lovecraft collection, Lovecraft's Nightmare A. It was supposed to be the cover of Sepultura's album Beneath the Remains, but Roadrunner Records let Obituary use it first. Roadrunner Records forced Sepultura to use another Michael Whelan illustration for Beneath the Remains. The second portion of the painting, Lovecraft's Nightmare B was used by Demolition Hammer for their 1992 album Epidemic of Violence. The incident with Sepultura led to Igor Cavalera become upset with Roadrunner Records' Monte Connor, with Cavalera notably having a tattoo of the cover on his arm.[3]
Obituary played Cause of Death in its entirety at the 2019 Decibel Metal & Beer Fest in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[4]
Cause of Death contains a cover of Celtic Frost's "Circle of the Tyrants". Celtic Frost frontman Tom G. Warrior has since endorsed the cover.[3]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Infected" | Peres/D. Tardy/J. Tardy | 5:34 |
| 2. | "Body Bag" | Peres/D. Tardy/J. Tardy | 5:49 |
| 3. | "Chopped in Half" | Peres/D. Tardy/J. Tardy | 3:43 |
| 4. | "Circle of the Tyrants" (Celtic Frost cover) | T. G. Warrior | 4:25 |
| 5. | "Dying" | Obituary/Peres | 4:29 |
| 6. | "Find the Arise" | Peres/D. Tardy/J. Tardy | 2:51 |
| 7. | "Cause of Death" | Peres/A. West/J. Tardy | 5:38 |
| 8. | "Memories Remain" | Peres/D. Tardy/J. Tardy | 3:44 |
| 9. | "Turned Inside Out" | Peres/D. Tardy/J. Tardy | 4:57 |
| Total length: | 41:02 | ||
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 10. | "Infected" (demo version) | 4:16 |
| 11. | "Memories Remain" (demo version) | 3:34 |
| 12. | "Chopped in Half" (demo version) | 3:45 |
Personnel
- John Tardy - vocals
- James Murphy - lead guitar
- Trevor Peres - rhythm guitar
- Frank Watkins - bass
- Donald Tardy - drums
References
- Birchmeier, Jason. "Cause of Death - Obituary". Allmusic. Retrieved December 12th, 2010.
- Birchmeier, Jason. "The End Complete - Obituary". Allmusic. Retrieved September 11th, 2011.
- Decibel Magazine. "Memories Remain: The Making of Obituary's "Cause of Death"". Decibel. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
- Kennelty, Greg. "BARONESS, OBITUARY, ENSLAVED & More Announced For Decibel Metal & Beer Fest 2019". Metal Injection. Retrieved 2018-12-16.