ABSCESSION – Rot of Ages
Release Date: 19th November 2021
Label: Transcending Obscurity Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Death Metal
FFO: Bloodbath, Lik, Edge of Sanity, Desultory, Rogga Johansson, Eye of Purgatory, Wombbath, Dismember, Entombed, Carnage.
Review By: Jay Creepy
The trouble for an old school metal ‘ed like myself these days is hunting out that wonderful brutal sound which stands out among the field of vocalists sounding like they’re vomiting into a metal bucket whilst their mates just stick their guitars against an amp to fuzz up the feedback! So it’s really nice to chance upon Sweden’s Abscession and their latest opus for a large serving of graphic noise and a complete throwback sound.
The first one out of the gate to gnaw your face off is Rat King Crawl, similar to early Machine Head with a sprinkle of Sepultura. Drummer Markus Porsklev is a sheer Duracell battery operated toy out of control on this, and I had a good feeling for this album just by the 2.52 mark! The timing of the music is fantastic as there is a transition to a more steady galloping sound to end the song.
Theater of Pain and Dead Man’s Hate reveal a passionate band who are serious in their intentions to punish. The tempos of both tracks are totally individual, but then Dead Man’s Hate switches up the pounding paces many times throughout and leaves the listener breathless. If you make it to the title track without your ears screaming for mercy, the structure begins in a way I haven’t heard for a while, busy and at first you think it’s all off-key, but then everything falls into place moments later to basically make you want to smash your cranium against something very solid. Multi instrumentalist Skaldir knows his music, yes siree.
At no point, whatsoever, does vocalist Thomas Clifford falter and deliver a weak performance. He is on point, his words clear, his growling yells wonderful and not totally overdone….. oh….. but oh….. midway into the above-mentioned title tune something happens that is very special – there’s a complete schizophrenic treat as it all fades to a piano and our tireless voice gives us a tragic and deep pure singing delivery. This, ladies, gentlemen and monsters from the abyss, is the deciding factor in Rot of Ages being the most essential purchase for Yule.
In saying that, the only grumble I have perhaps is the fact (to my ears) the positioning of When the Guillotine Falls, War Machine and Prometheus Unbound feels wrong. Back to back there are way too many similarities in style, even though War Machine jumps back up midway, as seems to be the norm for many of Abscession creations.
Our grand finale Eta Della Putrefazione is keyboard driven, heavy on dramatic atmosphere with a twist of the eighties, and is a masterful way to leave us.
This is a level up from their last album, 2015’s Grave Offerings. That was good, however this one beats it to the corner and leaves it crying. Rot of Ages harks back to the good old days of finding something loud and storming in a record store with painted black walls and creased posters hanging around.
Has there been darker? Has there been more violent sounding bands? Yes, but this isn’t about comparing to others, this is the here and now. Abscession are constructing a huge citadel of nightmares for anyone daring themselves to enter. 
(4 / 5)
