REVIEW: Obnox – Bang Messiah

REVIEW: Obnox - Bang Messiah

Jessica Firmin

The latest release of Obnox, Lamont “Bim” Thomas, stays consistent with his genre
defying catalog. In his third decade of recording, the Cleveland based artist remains consistent in
his production of truely unique music. Obnox released Templo Del Sonido, a free jazz influenced
underground rock record, in August of 2018 quickly followed by his latest project, Bang
Messiah, in October 2018. In comparison to the noisy sound of Templo Del Sonido, Bang
Messiah explores a different sound with elements of punk, psych, funk and hip-hop.

Obnox’s reputation as an artist that does not confine himself to the rules of any one genre
is certainly upheld in this record. The album cannot simply be defined as a hip-hop influenced
rock album because it seems to bounce around hip-hop, rock and other genres from song to song.
In “I Hate Everything,” Obnox defines a clear garage rock sound with addicting guitar while not
backing down from expressing his feelings. Just two tracks later, my favorite from the album,
“40th Street Black” takes a different approach with a noticeable hip-hop influenced beat and
more rapping than vocals. Towards the end of the album, “Wake and Quake” explores yet
another more relaxed, muted sound in comparison to earlier tracks. In “Off Ya Ass”, Obnox
returns again to his noisy rock sound and aggressive vocals.

While Bang Messiah surely can appear to be an eclectic grouping of sounds, Obnox’s
refined skills help him to seamlessly fit together all of the different elements. The result is an
album that surprises you with a new sound for each song, all so unique that they somehow seem
to belong together.