I made the ultimate faux pas of perusing the pages of a certain popular metal mag that awarded this album a mighty score of 9.5. The problem? When an album is acclaimed with such ardent adulation it is hard not to approach the record without a certain amount of anticipation, so much that I was kind of expecting this to knock me aghast out of my chair the moment I hit play…and when the album finished and my posterior was still firmly positioned in seat, one is left wondering simply what all the fuss is about. It was incredibly daft of me really, as I know as well as anyone that some of the best albums are those which require a bit of commitment and determination in order to reap the true rewards it holds within, and certainly after five or six spins I am reminded of this, as it becomes clear that this is one of those albums.
Unbelievably it has been an 8 year wait since the release of their last opus; the magnificent Tara and it was never going to be an easy one to top. The previous few albums have carried largely Celtic themes of both history and mythology and this came across also in the music that incorporated the use of bagpipes, although with this self-titled album they have returned to a Sumerian absorption that permeated their earlier work. Naturally this means you can expect a few subtle differences if, like me, you are more au fait with their recent offerings, and although Proscriptor (drummer, vocalist and founder) now has in place a whole new line-up, the Absu sound is every bit as crushing, as vehement and as mystical as it should be. There is absolutely no time wasted with gentle melodic openings here as they come straight in with an utterly relentless furore of black thrashing madness with ‘Between The Absu of Eridu and Erech’. As the track progresses it is torn apart by what can best be likened to an army marching in unison looking to unleash hell. ‘Night Fire Canonization’ is another malevolent affair with the vehement vocals of Proscriptor sounding as sick as ever, while some nice Mesopotamian drum patterns are brought into play for an ephemeral moment that would be more usually attributed to Melechesh.
If you are of the persuasion that song titles containing girls’ names are for pussies then you might want to brace yourself and prepare to be obliterated by the truly monstrous ‘Amy’; with its mighty riffs and furious hyperblasts this skitters along like a demon child on the warpath, leaving a trail of mass destruction in its wake. There is a Kampfarian feel projected through the gargantuan swagger that dominates this song, while the clean-ish vocals on the chorus add a dark, mysterious slant to the song. To neatly sum up this song; fucking amazing!
As downright crushing an album this may be, it’s not all about wall-to-wall thrashing, in fact, what really makes the music stand out is the way in which the ferocity is broken into with exotic Eastern licks and jazzy interludes while never compromising its sheer heaviness. Plonked smack bang in the middle of this album is the truly epic ‘Of The Dead Who Never Rest In Their Tombs Are The Attendance Of Familiar Spirits’; clearly memorable song-titles weren’t high up on Proscriptors list of priorities with this album, and god help me if I am asked to say that while drunk…but I digress. The track is split into three parts; A.) Diversified Signs Inscribed; B.) Our Earth Of Black; C.) Voor, and you can just about make out where the piece is broken up with the tidal shifts in sound. The initial speed-fuelled madness gives way to a portentous chant that falls into the ether as a sudden burst of jazzed-up avant garde craziness manifests before all is brought back into place. As the composition is driven forward is it pushed back with a sudden surge of cosmic synths that lend a futuristic flavour to the track. The piece then gradually grinds to a halt following a series of discordant scraping noises that is the musical equivalent to a psychotic breakdown, yet such backward momentum allows one to catch their breath before being taken in by the super threatening ‘Magick Square Cipher’ with its steamrolling riffs and heavy blackened sound that has a Mayhem-esque feel to it.
I jumped at the chance to grab this promo, and it certainly doesn’t disappoint! After my initial scepticism, I must stress how much I am glad I persevered with the album and odds are it will be appearing fairly high up in my end of year list. If you haven’t checked out Absu before then it really is about time you did if you enjoy black metal that’s fast as f***. Pure Sumerian gold!
http://www.absu.us/
http://www.myspace.com/absu
http://www.candlelightrecords.co.uk
