Abyssmal Sorrow

Imagine you are in the middle of a warm, humid wilderness, the sun peering through the branches of the trees above you, and the sounds of the birds and animals around you chatter or tweet as you sit there in solitude and pure depression. That is the kind of feeling you get when you listen to this album. This album is the definition of funeral doom metal, and the definition of pure sorrow.

The vocals in this album are much different from previous funeral doom metal bands I have listened to. It has a thick, powerful guttural growl like all funeral doom metal and death metal bands do, but with a bit extra influence added in. There is some black metal mixed in the vocal style, and to top it all off, the vocals put a stronger sense of melody and rhythm than most funeral doom metal and death metal bands do. It almost sounds like a deep and guttural singing style than your typical growls. One other thing I really enjoy about these vocals is the very good echoing effect they have. It works just right here. It supports the sound of being in the wilderness even stronger.

The guitar work is absolutely brilliant in this piece. The melody is very depressing and atmospheric. The distortion is extremely intense, giving the guitar a much more fuzzy sound than most bands I have listened to. The guitars are also down tuned very, very low, the kind of low you would hear in a goregrind band, just not as shitty. The guitar has perfect riffs, perfect timing, and has an overall perfect sound. The guitar in this piece is very different, the kind of thing that if you heard a riff from this band, you would instantly know that it is them.

The drumming is also very good in this album. The drumming is very slow, like all funeral doom metal bands, and has a great sense of rhythm. The beats used in this band are very good and simple. Not much bass is used in this work, probably due to the very low tone of the guitars doing the work for it.

Overall, this album is without a doubt, the best funeral doom metal album I have heard. Yes, it is better than Ahab's "Call of the Wretched Sea." It is that good. Trust me, buy this beautiful work of art. Doom metal fans will not regret this.

Funeral Doom rendered in an oldschool early ‘90’s sound! Deliberate or not, something about the throbbing, downtuned guitars (and their tone in particular; it is as if the guitar’s tone knob is half-way turned down) and the morose retrospective riffs really remind me of old, ultra-slow doom bands such as Theorgothon or Abysmal.

This music is another example of the power of simplicity. The songs are long and detached, a feeling that is created by the slow strumming technique of dissonant, sometimes jangly and often discordant depressive phrases with each chord held for a contemplative moment and then the next brought down like a funeral shroud made of chainmail. The dusty-sounding acoustic guitar interludes appear here and there to add their own dim stroke to this dismal picture. The songs thus march, rarely breaking for anything faster than a funeral pace of procession and with minimal overdubbed instrumentation create a crushing atmosphere, that is at the same time refreshing and uplifting.

This release is not long enough to be a full-length, with 3 songs clocking in at just 35 minutes. I wish there was more and especially more of the first song “Rotten” where the varying shades of doom and despair are contrasted starkly against eachother. In conclusion; a good retrospective work in the style of early 90’s funeral doom. You’ll know if you’re a fan of this or not.

Originally published in Procession of Black Doom Zine Issue 1, 2008