Abscess – Dawn of Inhumanity
Goddess of Filth and Plague
Torn From Tomorrow
Never Sane Again
Dawn of Inhumanity
The Rotting Land
Dead Haze
What Have We Done to Ourselves?
Dark Side of a Broken Knife
Divine Architect of Disaster
Black Winds of Oblivion
Oh yeah! Now this is what death metal sounds like. After a short intro, a lunatic scream leads us into a fuzzy, filthy metal nightmare that could only come from Abscess. Given that band mainman Chris Reifert served in both Death and Autopsy, you know this is going to be proper death metal – but the surprising thing is how much variety there can be in Abscess' sound. 'Never Sane Again', for example, opens with a rocking punky riff and some shredding guitar licks, before a middle section that is so full of DOOM that it could give Candlemass a run for their money. Abscess are not some one dimensional band who do nothing but bludgeon you. Much of the music is very atmospheric – there's a real sense of dread about this album; it sounds like things are coming at you out of the mist of a swamp. 'The Rotting Land' is easy to imagine as part of a horror soundtrack. This ambiance is thanks not only to Abscess' musical skill, but the production, which takes a bit of getting used to – the bass player might as well have not turned up, for the most part – but it only adds to the creepiness of the band's sound. That's not to say Abscess aren't above a bit of fun though – 'What Have We Done to Ourselves?' is an incredibly catchy, and slightly daft, song about a zombie plague, urging us that “When the dead are living/You must stop the killing!”
It's a source of eternal wonder why Abscess aren't more revered. This record rocks as much as Motörhead, as well as being as creepy as any horror soundtrack, and yet it's pure death metal. What more do you want?
Reviewed by Ed Chapman
Dawn of Inhumanity released on 15th March on Tyrant Syndicate
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