Abbath
So Immortal as we know them are no more. As a fan of Immortal I met the news of Abbath leaving/being ousted/walking away needing rehab etc with a glumness normally reserved for receiving socks at Xmas. However, seemingly undeterred, Abbath decided to press on regardless and release his own record with none other than King Ov Hell collaborating with the bonkers mainman.
Now as I read various reviews and Facebook comments it seems the idea of judging Abbath's solo effort without comparing it to "All Shall Fall" is near impossible. It's hard though sat here listening to "Winterbane". A mere 2 tracks into the album and I could just as easily be listening to Immortal as far as I am concerned.
Where "Abbath" differs from Immortal is actually quite subtle. Structurally it is the same, vocally (obvs) it is the same as it is lyrically. The direction is a slightly different path to being trodden. Although still icy cold in the main, the album has a more "metal" feel to it making it more accessible to a wider audience perhaps than the frost riddled sound of say "Battles In The North". Some of the lead work is an obvious step in the more metal edge described, however they are few and far between.
Still though we have to ask ourselves what exactly did we want from one of BMs most infamous characters? Abbath is clearly the driving force (let's face it the band is him) here but one has to question whether the case is simply that he is Immortal. The sound was his own creation and therefore is his indelible mark on the world of music in whatever guise he chooses to release records under. With its stabs of synths "Ashes of the Damned" could just as easily sit on "At The Heart Of Winter".
Stepping away from the comparison aspect for a moment there are somethings wrong with "Abbath" that do impinge slightly on my enjoyment - although they nowhere near ruin it. The kick drum is far too prominent in the mix, in fact I would go as far to say the drums as a whole are too forward in the mix often at the expense of the vocals. "Ocean of Wounds", storming track though it is, suffers with this in particular for me and although I can hear and identify Abbath's grim style perfectly it does seem a little muted by the noise of the drums.
I also find the guitar tone a little bit lost at times, especially on "Count The Dead". The main issue for me is perhaps the lack of memorability of the opus as a whole. I can't hear in my head most of the tracks I have listened to so far, yes I get the odd memory of a stab of synth or an occasional flash of a riff surfaces in my brain but in the main the tracks all seem to blur into obscurity not long after they finish.
To get back to my earlier point, it is better than "All Shall Fall". Whilst probably no more memorable it does have much more of an obvious energy and strength about it than "All Shall Fall". Would I pre-order it? Get it on vinyl? CD even? Probably not in all honesty, certainly not based on the few listens I have given it this week. Don't mistake my lack of instant purchase activity as a slur on the record though, if you're looking for an enjoyable romp of riffs and energetic metal then you can't go far wrong here. I just feel it very little removed from his Immortal work and can foresee already a tiresome few years of comparison between Immortal and Abbath outputs. It could be that nobody wants to entertain the thought of Abbath being anything other than Immortal's ever-present frontman and a result we can't look at anything he releases as being "not Immortal". Will add it to the old cloud library under the "occasional blast" playlist.
"Abbath" is released via Seasons of Mist on 22nd January 2016, check out pre-order options here
3/5
Now as I read various reviews and Facebook comments it seems the idea of judging Abbath's solo effort without comparing it to "All Shall Fall" is near impossible. It's hard though sat here listening to "Winterbane". A mere 2 tracks into the album and I could just as easily be listening to Immortal as far as I am concerned.
Where "Abbath" differs from Immortal is actually quite subtle. Structurally it is the same, vocally (obvs) it is the same as it is lyrically. The direction is a slightly different path to being trodden. Although still icy cold in the main, the album has a more "metal" feel to it making it more accessible to a wider audience perhaps than the frost riddled sound of say "Battles In The North". Some of the lead work is an obvious step in the more metal edge described, however they are few and far between.
Still though we have to ask ourselves what exactly did we want from one of BMs most infamous characters? Abbath is clearly the driving force (let's face it the band is him) here but one has to question whether the case is simply that he is Immortal. The sound was his own creation and therefore is his indelible mark on the world of music in whatever guise he chooses to release records under. With its stabs of synths "Ashes of the Damned" could just as easily sit on "At The Heart Of Winter".
Stepping away from the comparison aspect for a moment there are somethings wrong with "Abbath" that do impinge slightly on my enjoyment - although they nowhere near ruin it. The kick drum is far too prominent in the mix, in fact I would go as far to say the drums as a whole are too forward in the mix often at the expense of the vocals. "Ocean of Wounds", storming track though it is, suffers with this in particular for me and although I can hear and identify Abbath's grim style perfectly it does seem a little muted by the noise of the drums.
I also find the guitar tone a little bit lost at times, especially on "Count The Dead". The main issue for me is perhaps the lack of memorability of the opus as a whole. I can't hear in my head most of the tracks I have listened to so far, yes I get the odd memory of a stab of synth or an occasional flash of a riff surfaces in my brain but in the main the tracks all seem to blur into obscurity not long after they finish.
To get back to my earlier point, it is better than "All Shall Fall". Whilst probably no more memorable it does have much more of an obvious energy and strength about it than "All Shall Fall". Would I pre-order it? Get it on vinyl? CD even? Probably not in all honesty, certainly not based on the few listens I have given it this week. Don't mistake my lack of instant purchase activity as a slur on the record though, if you're looking for an enjoyable romp of riffs and energetic metal then you can't go far wrong here. I just feel it very little removed from his Immortal work and can foresee already a tiresome few years of comparison between Immortal and Abbath outputs. It could be that nobody wants to entertain the thought of Abbath being anything other than Immortal's ever-present frontman and a result we can't look at anything he releases as being "not Immortal". Will add it to the old cloud library under the "occasional blast" playlist.
"Abbath" is released via Seasons of Mist on 22nd January 2016, check out pre-order options here
3/5
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