[throneofmight]

I really liked what I heard....What about you guys?
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[crypticus]

I posted this on the other ABSU thread, but I think it bears repeating since I really dig the album:

Totally worthy of purchase, especially on vinyl. I'd say it's kind of a mix between "Third Storm..." & "Tara" -
still Thrashing, but a touch more melodic with tastefully done keyboard parts. Some parts have a modern ENSLAVED influence.
There are no filler songs except for the last which is just an outro. Needless to say, the drumming is amazing, with some of the tightest blasts I've ever heard! It's bizarre how much the new guitar players sound exactly like shaftiel - there's almost no change in style between this & "Tara".
By the way, the song on their MYSPACE is one of the weakest & most typical on the album, the rest are much better,
especially one called "Magick Square Cipher" which I was really impressed by. Long story short: Totally on my top 10 of the year & a must buy
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-Patrick (CRYPTICUS)
http://crypticus.bandcamp.com/

[sztorm75]

It's not out yet!

[zbielak]

Well if I were to tattoo myself 4 logos I'd pretty much balance between darkthrone, slayer, absu and carcass, yet somehow the album suffers a lot from overanticipated release syndrom - it's not good enough for an Absu record, as simple as that - it lacks ABSU. It is overporduced, it's too sweet, c'mon where are the acoustic passages, what for christs sake is that childish piano doing there, where are the vocals, where the manic drums, where's the madness, where ta fuck is TEXAS?! Shaftiel and Equitant were responsible for most of riffing and their absence on "Absu" vastly shows, unfortunately... Okay, second track is a blistering glissando of guitar frenzy, fine , third one opens with some memorable trance-dance sway-driven riff that could have been easily penned by Mustaine for his 1st lp, but the point is, the deeper into the record we go, the more banally the songs appear. Songs break and fold incidentally - no wickedness in arrangement of structure changes, which was so essential for previous ABSU albums, shit... just listen to songs like VITRIOL or Never blow out eastern candle - where did that furious explosiveness go?! Where's the feel I had listening to Tara's opening, that it's some kind of "Killing Fields" on amphetamine... And the drums - totally triggered and overproduced to the point where the sad blackmetal drumming narrowmindedness manifests way too embarrassingly to digest. After all Ive been in love with this band for ages, and its good to see the album out. Judging by SadisticIntent-esque efficiency of cult underground bands, things might have gone worse. Too bad they could have gone much much better as well. Finally, apart from clearly undelined image and ideologic orthodoxy Absu's music always was a monotonous musical monument shredded with some quality deaththrash or thrash nuances (be it early Destruction drive, Slayer's abruptness or Dark Angel's frenzied solos) - it's dissapointing to see that the thrash-factor has detriorated toward some shitty third league banality that one might call modern Enslaved edge... Well fuck it anyway... there's so many bands ahead about to let us down in 2009, so why stick to Absu? I am sorry guys, I am glad You like the album, and thanks to Russ Givens for making it so accessible to broad audiences.

Generally: too easy-listening oriented, not enough of The RIFF, no Flow.

[dronevil]

[sztorm75]

I seem Hmm... fuck mp3! I'll wait for the vinyl from BoB that I pre-ordered.

[Demonomancy]

Nonstop listen to this. Amazing Album, unique as Fuck...typical mighty Absu !
The guitar sound remind me a lot of the Emissaires Album from Melechesh !

[alkahest]

there are people that will want to find problems with this record, so they will. I think it is fantastic and it sounds like Absu to me (though it also sounds like Enslaved, which is nice considering their recent record was a let down).

[ennemi]

a really great album, but too bad there is only one kind of voice this time
i think it deserves a lot of listening to be on it
it's indeed overproduced, more in the rank in the structures, but it remains excellent
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ta gueule

[vermin]

It has less 'filler' than 'Tara'. It has good production. (people whining about it being overproduced - I wonder what they EXPECTED it to sound like?)

I think it's a worthy release, but the only album of theirs that I'll regularly listen to is 'The Sun of Tiphareth'.

[Ninkaszi187]

I think it's awesome considering Equitant, and Shaftiel quit. I was ready to give up on Absu because of the linup change, and expecting a total snooze fest. Great record!

[bmdk666]

My two cents as a big fan of this band:

-cleanest production so far... I personally would have preferred a slightly dirtier sound.

-heavier reliance on keyboards. While they were well done it was strange to hear them this high in the mix.

-best drum sound on an Absu album so far, however the drumming itself wasn't as inventive as it was on previous albums. Sounded more straightforward, like his work in Melechesh.

-Proscriptors best vocal performance, its a bit deeper than before.

-stunning cover art.(Verwimp is among the elite)

-Overall it was a very good album with Absu taking a slightly different direction although I still personally prefer the black thrashing perfection that is Tara.

[Stygian Shadows 'zine]

Great album, no doubt, I like it! Worth to buy it on CD and vinyl!

[adrian5118]

This is m favorite album since Barathrum!

[Preacherofdoom]