Candlelight Records

In a just and fair world one would not be forced to wait eight whole years for legendary bands to release substantial new material. This, my friends, is not a just and fair world.

2001's Tara  was, and still remains, a masterpiece monument of metal. It showed us Absu reaching a level that only the greats ever reach, consistently reminding us of their greatness and amazing accomplishment through out the duration of the album. This is not to imply that Absu had not achieved greatness before this release, because they very clearly had. But Tara felt like the realization of all possibilities within the band up to that point. After the tidal wave of awesome that was Tara  finally subsided and gave people room to breath again and recover from whiplash and broken necks, we awaited the next masterpiece. And we waited some more. And then some obscure and hard to find mini releases were let out, as well as a best-of compilation as a sort of teaser, to remind us that Absu still existed and withheld its powers from our sight.  But a new full length album of all new Absu material was not appearing on the horizon for quite a while.

A whole ten years ago, two years before Tara had even been released, Proscriptor shared with us the news that the next album would be simply called ABSU, and he even shared the track listing, which was surprisingly similar to what it actually is, ten years later. It seems some titles were changed, but that's not a lot considering what can happen over ten years. This is impressive, to say the least. It shows the dedication and the seriousness of the vision that the men of Absu had. While Proscriptor is the only remaining band member from the days ten years ago, it comes as no surprise that the music we hear on the self titled, long anticipated Absu album reflects that kind of dedication to a serious mission, and the kind of attention to detail that we have come to expect of Absu.

 Absu is a worthy follow up to Tara, not without its share of brilliance and factors that make it uinique in the Absu discography. Tara was the genius blend of highly accelerated riff-hungry thrash metal with the black metal that made Absu a household name, and further strokes of genius in the department of epicness. Absu sees the band wandering into progressive territory, with what sounds like the most compositionally complex and challenging music the band has recorded to date. Some parts remind me of later Death, when Chuck decided to get more adventurous, and other parts even remind me of a more aggressive version of Emperor's middle to later days, as well as more than a touch of Enslaved's style of progressive structure. But the epic thrashing that was what cast such destructive spells from Tara is still just as present on this album. The melody lines float so swiftly and easily alongside the rapid-fire riffs in much the same way they did on past efforts, making them something of an Absu signature. And speaking of melody, the melodies present what I perceive to be influence from a wide range of non-metal sources, surely intentional, considering the lyrical content. The musical framework acts as a home for the lyrics to reside inside of, having conformed somewhat to what the lyrics are trying to say. Eight years later, the songwriting capabilities seem to have advanced, as well. Not only is this musically complex and dense, with so much to discover on repeated listens, but the song structures are not what one would expect from anything in black metal, thrash metal or any form of heavy metal. This is most definitely progressive, and technical beyond doubt.

 I'd like to say a little something about Proscriptor. Proscriptor is easily one of metal's greatest living drummers, in my opinion. However, since this is a review written by me, it is understood that everything I say here is my opinion, so I need not qualify that last statement. I will simply now state it as fact that Proscriptor is one of the finest living drummers in all of metal. He is a rare breed, one who's drumming is not simply rhythmic time-keeping and percussive accompaniment, but an active and crucial element of the music. His voice is easily recognizable in the genre, and as the voice of Absu, but his drumming capabilities exceed most others. Proscriptor does not simply play fast and aggressive, to the point at which you can no longer keep up. Proscriptor brings another dimension to the music with his drumming, that is matched by the brilliant guitar work. The magic of Absu is that the final product really is greater than the sum of all the parts. Each musician's performance is enhanced by the others' performances, and also enhances the other performances. The resulting sound is one of a veteran band that has honed a very tight, disciplined, and expert sound. The band is now mostly new members, but this element is not lost in the live setting. They have succeeded in transferring this sound to the stage flawlessly. 

This album stimulates everything in the senses that metal and adventurous music should stimulate. Do not make the mistake of expecting this to be Tara part II, because Absu refuse to reuse and repeat. This is new and suggests the possibility of new directions in the future. It definitely gives us the more musically and compositionally gifted side of Absu, but does not get carried away in the display of shocking ability, and remains grounded to give us unforgettable riffs and the slight atmospheric expression of keyboards at their most effective.