Relapse Records has a pretty hot property on their hands in the form of death metal act Abysmal Dawn. Their last two releases have been solid examples of what finely crafted death metal should sound like, so why not reissue their 2006 debut to see where it all started?
Abysmal Dawn, fronted by the vocal & guitar powerhouse Charles Elliott, take the classic Florida death metal sound of the early 90's and mix it with some of the modern technical flavor that many bands favor today. So yeah, you can hear bits of Death, Morbid Angel, and Nile in their music, but it's all done pretty tastefully, quite brutal with some technical arrangements and melody thrown in for good measure. Plenty of lethal barnburners here, perhaps not quite as polished as what we've heard on the more recent releases, but you can't deny the power of "In the Hands of Death", "Servents to Their Knees", "Blacken the Sky", "Wicked Impulse", and "State of Mind". The riffs actually are quite good throughout, combining the technical bent of Death or Morbid Angel with the groove of Pantera, and Elliott's growls are menacing yet easy to understand. "Crown Desire" even has a slight Slayer feel to it thanks to the scorching riffing, making for a really intense track.
Also included on this reissue are a few of the original tracks from their 2004 demo, and while they are pretty rough sounding you can still hear the potential in the band at that early stage. Looking back, From Ashes is still a very potent debut release from this death metal act, and they haven't let up since.
Track Listing
1. Impending Doom 1:35
2. In the Hands of Death 3:43
3. Blacken the Sky 4:05
4. Servants to Their Knees 3:52
5. Wicked Impulse 3:19
6. Solitude's Demise 4:27
7. State of Mind 4:06
8. Salting the Earth 3:25
9. Crown Desire 3:38
10. Blacken the Sky (Demo 2004) 4:01
11. Solitude's Demise (Demo 2004) 4:25
12. State of Mind (Demo 2004) 4:02
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