Unquestionable Presence is the second studio album by Americandeath metal band Atheist. It was released in 1991 and added a new sound by using jazz-like harmonies, subtle Latin rhythms and unusual time signatures.
Content
Unquestionable Presence is considered a landmark album in the genre of technical death metal.[1]Ultimate Guitar senior editor David Slavković states the album "dives deep into progressive metal waters", highlighting the album's stylistic diversity, and complex song structures and transitions.[2]
Bassist Roger Patterson wrote the bass lines for Unquestionable Presence, but died in a touring van accident before the recording sessions took place. His work, however, can be heard on the pre-production demos included with the 2005 re-release. Tony Choy was brought in as a replacement to play bass on the album.
James Hinchcliffe described the album in Terrorizer as "the very pinnacle of scorching yet brain-twisting technical metal".[4] Phil Freeman in The Wire (issue 261, p. 53) described Unquestionable Presence as a "more complex and progressive album, every song rocketing through multiple tricky time signatures and endless variations on already baffling riffs."[5] In October 2005, Unquestionable Presence was inducted into the Decibel Magazine Hall of Fame being the ninth album overall to be featured in the Decibel Hall of Fame.[6]
Track listing
All lyrics by Kelly Shaefer. All music composed by Atheist.
No.
Title
Length
1.
"Mother Man"
4:34
2.
"Unquestionable Presence"
4:07
3.
"Your Life's Retribution"
3:17
4.
"Enthralled in Essence"
3:38
5.
"An Incarnation's Dream"
4:53
6.
"The Formative Years"
3:30
7.
"Brains"
3:41
8.
"And the Psychic Saw"
4:45
Total length:
32:25
2005 re-release
In 2005, Relapse Records re-released Unquestionable Presence. This edition has been digitally remastered, and features nine bonus tracks.
No.
Title
Length
9.
"Enthralled in Essence" (Pre-production Demo 8/90)
