Unquestionable Presence

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Unquestionable Presence is the second studio album by American death 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.

Background

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.

Composition and music

The album makes use of slap bass and odd time signatures. According to Eduardo Rivadavia of AllMusic, Unquestionable Presence is characterized by "sparing but highly effective use of melody (mostly nuances and accents during solos and choruses)."<ref>Template:Citation</ref> Unquestionable Presence is considered a landmark album in the genre of technical death metal.<ref>Badin, O. (December 2006). Terrorizer #151, "Death Metal: The DM Top 40", page 53.</ref> 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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Reception and legacy

Template:Album ratings James Hinchcliffe described the album in Terrorizer as "the very pinnacle of scorching yet brain-twisting technical metal".<ref name=terrorizer /> 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."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> 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.<ref name="dB HoF">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The album has been called "one of the Floridian death metal scene's ultimate statements in progressive metal."<ref>Template:Citation</ref>

Track listing

All lyrics by Kelly Shaefer. All music composed by Atheist. Template:Tracklist

2005 re-release

In 2005, Relapse Records re-released Unquestionable Presence. This edition has been digitally remastered, and features nine bonus tracks.

Personnel

• Kelly Shaefer – vocals, rhythm guitar
• Rand Burkey – lead guitar
• Tony Choy – bass
• Steve Flynn – drums
• Roger Patterson – bass (on tracks 9–15 on 2005 re-release)
• Scott Burns – production
• Atheist – production
• Justice Mitchell – cover artwork