Here's a record dug out of a cold, subterranean seam where the light is poor and the riffs are venomous, honed straight from the guttered hush of the Belgian underground and by members affiliated with numerous fine projects (previously known as Dehuman, now members of Putrid Offal, Echo Solar Void and Neptunian Maximalism). The bleak, expressionist vision where human form dissolves into shadow and texture on the cover, alongside a neatly-designed and Grave Miasma-esque band logo, is already enough to invite notice, but the music lives up to the commanded focus too. Abysmal Descent's debut stands as a formidable slab of old-school death metal, with some ounces of doom and inspired by the genre's founding titans, while flowing naturally alongside its modern torchbearers.
The influence doesn't stop on the logo, but the band remains distinct from its pack. Dismal Thoughts sits in a sweet, ominous place, with a production that provides clarity while retaining atmosphere, and influences that are clear without being slavish. The record's sound and sharp riffing reminds a lot of the two Cruciamentum albums, as the band's compositional instincts are of the same rotten nature. Spirits of old from Incantation and the perplexed structures of mid-era Morbid Angel, with some of the ritualistic groove of Immolation under a microscope of more recent technology is what makes Dismal Thoughts effective, and directed to certain sets of ears. The production provides clarity without undermining atmosphere, as Abysmal Descent sweeps through mental ruin with a death metal avalanche that, however, doesn't seek innovation.
All tracks are long in duration (six to seven minutes) and frequently roll on middle-paced tempos, but either then or when the band accelerates, guitar lines are always dominant. Vocals range from cavernous roars to rasping declamations, having a front and center personality along the instrumentation. With an one-minute introduction and the opening of "Labyrinth of Distress", things take time to set in. "Death Rope" is a faster piece and one of the heaviest of the album, as the faster / slower sections are in a constant tango on "Dismal Thoughts", "Obscured Visions" and "Imaginal Horror", where most Abysmal Descent's creative framework is unfolded. The slow build in the first minutes of "Fragmented Soul" reminded me of "Promulgation of the Fall" by Dead Congregation, even though here the track erupts way faster.
On "Abyss of Despair", the band stresses more on melancholic melodicism that approaches doom / death metal, with a moment of growling vocals on top of clean guitar riffs that goes closer to funeral doom metal even. This piece has, in my opinion, the clearest influences from traditional doom in the entirety of the record, and connects nicely with the final "Imaginal Horror". Overall and in one sentence, here lies old-school death metal. If you're familiar with any of the aforementioned names, or additional bands from the roster of Nuclear Winter Records like Excarnated Entity, Sarcophagum and Mortual, this one is right for you. Dismal Thoughts is a rigorous statement inside an already explored idiom, but the band surely knows its purpose in it.
Shadows loom ever closer
Release: October 31st, 2025 // Nuclear Winter Records
Rating: 4 out of 5
Wonderfully written, this is on my queue for the week
ReplyDeleteIf it's like Cruciamentum, I will love it
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