abyssal a beacon in the husk

Abyssal Explores the Caverns of Death Metal on "II – Discernment: Khyphotic Suzerains"

abyssal a beacon in the husk

Death metal knows no boundaries: whether chock-full of straightforward riffage or totally melted into an ambient atmosphere, it howls mightily across all permutations of its expression. “Dark ambient death metal” project Abyssal specialize themselves acutely in this regard, aiming for ambiance over concrete detail, abstraction over sheer resolution, depth over breadth. Their last full-length Antikatastaseis illuminated the artistry in developing a “cavernous” sound without losing the listener to overly muddied tones or melodies far too buried to have any impact. Soon, the group will be returning with their fourth full-length A Beacon in the Husk, taking the cavern-based formula to the next level by introducing swaths of new dynamics, including a much more patient pace and more delicate attention to detail. Check out an exclusive stream of the album’s fifth track “II – Discernment: Khyphotic Suzerains” below.

Whereas Antikatastaseis felt like the ripping apart of spacetime, “II – Discernment: Khyphotic Suzerains” shows us that A Beacon in the Husk aims to simply crush it instead. With a steady, methodical tempo (which boosts occasionally to extremely satisfying blasts) and the same deeply-embedded vocal performance which has come to characterize Abyssal, “II – Discernment: Khyphotic Suzerains” sees the project more purposeful and goal-oriented than ever before. The tenets of doom show themselves much more abruptly here, too, but the blackened edge of Abyssal is certainly not lost. As cliche as the word is, “devastating” works especially well here to describe both the band’s sound and how the album sounds (i.e. production) — this marrying of aesthetics with raw content helps Abyssal achieve the fully mature stature they surely now have earned.

A Beacon in the Husk releases June 21st via Profound Lore. Abyssal will be performing the following East Coast dates soon:

Abyssal & Tchornobog — 2019 Tour Dates
05/24 – Brooklyn, NY @ Bazaar (w/ The True Black Dawn, Merrimack, Deletere)
05/26 – Baltimore, MD @ Maryland Deathfest
05/27 – Philadelphia, PA @ Kung Fu Necktie
05/28 – Montreal, QC @ Katacombes

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