ABRAMELIN – Sins Of The Father
Reviewed by: Shell Dahlia
Review Score: 8.5
The gold rush isn’t over on this tiny island I call home because Abremalin’s fourth full length studio album ‘Sins Of The Father’ released through ‘Hammerheart Records’ is pure Aussie death metal gold!
Having been around since 1988, formally known as ‘Acheron’ until the early 90’s, they still embody that old school death metal sound spiced up with modern instrumental technicality. When I read that drumming legend David Hadley, from one of my favourite Australian bands Psycroptic, was stepping in for this album I was extremely excited and my excitement has not been in vain as David has definitely brought his skillset to the table, making the percussion shine adding technicality and smash your face heaviness to the tracks. The vocals have that classic grit and grime known in classic death metal with a slightly blackened tone on some tracks such as the title track ‘Sins Of The Father.’ Musically, an extremely well-rounded piece of Aussie death metal.
Vocalist Simon Dower has a heavy influence on the lyrics and artwork which is inspired by a history of devouring horror literature. Each song telling a different grotesque tale which is not for the faint hearted. The album art work lets you know exactly what you’re in for with its gruesome imagery which reminds me of something you would see on a Cannibal Corpse or Exhumed album cover. It’s gory, shocking and unsettling which sets the perfect precedent for the album. The unnerving story telling on each track is sure to impress the most diehard horror aficionados. The only thing, which is a personal preference not a technical flaw, that brings the score down slightly is variations in the vocal range. As I said though, this is something that I yearn for personally, not a flaw in the music what so ever.
After four years Abramelin have come back with an album worthy of receiving a lot of attention and appreciation from the metal scene and I couldn’t be more pleased with the outcome of their efforts. The guys are embarking on a tour supporting Pestilence in November, tour dates are below. If you love everything that death metal has been built on then this album is definitely not one to miss. Head to Bandcamp and treat your ears!
