Florida death metal pioneers Obituary have been playing metal since 1984. After 25 years in the genre, one tends to gain a pretty solid fanbase. Obituary’s fans came through and helped them successfully crowdfund their upcoming album. They exceeded their original (humble) goal of $10,000, and have currently raised almost $20,000, which will allow them to “unlock” stretch goals. The stretch goal for 20K is a documentary on the studio that served as a breeding ground for the Tampa death metal sound, Morrisound Studios:
“Morrisound documentary: We took a camera crew to Morrisound Studios, where it all started, set up our gear and recorded for three days. If we reach $20,000, we will edit the footage into a four-part documentary. Every single backer will receive a digital download of the ‘Morrisound Experience’.”
Obituary is now another band to join the crowdfunding craze that seems to be transforming the metal music industry. The concept of “stretch goals” also allays any fears fans might have of them misappropriating excess funds (see: Tim Lambesis using Austrian Death Machine money for a different kind of death machine…allegedly). The low bar of only 10K to fund the record also shows that Obituary is using the bare minimum to record the record. They are doing it all in their own studio, so they really are asking for only what they absolutely need.
Regarding what to expect from the album, according to their Kickstarter page:
“Honestly, we can’t say enough about how great this album is shaping up to be. It’s true to the Obituary you’ve known for 2+ decades, and you can certainly count on a true death metal experience.
The thing that makes this so different for us is that we’re doing it our way, in our hometown and from our own studio. It’s hard to explain how that comes out…it’s just real, raw and honest Obituary music. It is going to be some of the best stuff we’ve ever done – it’s truly us, and we want to share that with you!”
There are still 40 days left in the campaign, so if you want to pledge money and help them unlock further “stretch goals”, it’s not too late to support one of the founders of the death metal genre. Visit their Kickstarter here.
