| CD REVIEW Abandon |
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Band : Abandon This Gothenburg based Swedish Sludge quintet was formed in 1998, and released their 6-track demo Days Are Darkened that same year. Following the 3-track demo Unfinished Blasphemy, released in 2000, the band apparently signed a deal with Black Star Foundation. The first result of this collaboration came with the December 2001 released mini-album (although announced as a full-length with 7 tracks, it only contained 29 ½ minutes of music) When It Falls Apart, issued on a rotation of 500 copies. It speaks to the band’s integrity and belief in their more recent material, that none of the demo tracks is featured on this album. When the band returned with their 2004 release In Reality We Suffer (first issued on 500 copies through Black Star Foundation in a collaboration with Thrash And Burn Records and Eldsjäl Promotion, it was rre-issued through Codebreaker Records in November of the same year, and then again by Earache Records in April 2005, each time with slightly different covers), they’d apparently undergone a further evolution, now also incorporation longer tracks (3 of which over 6 minutes long, and two even longer than 14!), making the 9-track album last a staggering 60 ½ minutes. With a couple of changes in their beginning stages, the band’s line-up eventually stabilized around singer Johan Carlzon, guitarist Ingvar Sandgren, pump organ player Medhi Vafaei, bassist David Frederiksson, and drummer Daniele Cosimi. Although what we get on this 2-disc affair is relatively new to most of us people who can only go by recorded material, (most of) the music we hear on it was written & rehearsed between late 2002 and 2005, then recorded in November 2005 (by Fredrik Reinedahl and Adam Magnusson, with soundscapes during the tracks “It’s All Gone” and “There Is No Escape”, both on the 2nd disc, added by Adam and David). Vocals were recorded at several sessions during the years that followed. It’s a pity things took that long, for this is truly a fantastic album for those who like Sludge Metal where outspun soundtracks get married with the slow-grinding mussyness of the Metal part of the genre. What finally brought it about is sad enough as well, because we find the album decicated to the singer, whom left us and this earth on December 17, 2008…following an overdose while the band was on tour in Spain. Well, as far as that bit goes, you can find me an arrogant bastard, but people who mess around with shooting up their veins with poison deserve to die in such a way! It’s a very selfish thing to flee away in drugs when things get tough, and I say one should live life as it’s supposed to be lived, endure all hardships like a Man! My only…pity…goes out for the people he left behind, his family members and close friends whom had to come up witth the necessary funds to bring oiver the coffin from Barcelona! Anyway, ‘nuff said ‘bout that, and let’s return to the music at hand! The band describes itself as “a result of the continuous encounters between aggression, despair, sadness and pure anger…” with lyrics that deal with “…Abandon family lives, experiences, struggles in its various states of mind…”. At any rate, there’s also a socio-political side to the band, revealing the pain and the sickness of mankind in modern society. Wow…with a negative viewpoint like that, it would almost become understandable that some of the less psychically strong turn to drugs in order to evade that kind of reality (then again, there’s no excuse for the misery people, who enter that stage, get into later on!). And, by the way, we music lovers can only cheer the fact that this band’s music is now finally surfacing. Because it’s a gréat album this! Woith a total length of the material exceeding 106 minutes, it obviously hàd to be spread over two discs, and just like on the previous album, you get a nice alternation of calmer and more electric passages, of (relatively) shorter tracks against longer ones (There’s also two versions of “Eulogy”, barely reaching the 4-minute barrier on disc 1, and spun out to an near 19-minute scorcher on disc 2). Carlzon was a very emotional singer, frequently stretching out his screamed style vocals. His artisty didn’t stop at music either (let’s not forget that he also sang in Hardcore band Relevant Few), and most of the art-work (exception his portrait) is his! Although a lot of the negativity of this band already speaks through their music, the second disc which is more instrumental than the first, comes over slightly less dark…that how deep the lyrics will take you! A truly grand epitaph, and to convince yourself of this band’s worth, you can listen to plenty of its music at myspace.com/abandon, where 3 tracks off this release are posted alongside three off older albums. In spite of my apparent negativity towards Carlzon’s behaviour as a man, I regard his music, or rather that of Abandon with the highest esteem, and it’s therefore that I feel The Dead End (appropriately titled, don’t you think?) not only gets an almomst-perfect rating, but also a nomination into my year-lists! 98/100 Tony. |