### Abysmal Dawn: From ashes

#### 27/07/11 || InquisitorGeneralis

A few years ago I covered Abysmal Dawn’s solid slab of techish death metal “Programmed to Consume”. However, our fearless leader Lord K is programmed to prune and he deleted that bad boy. Well, I ain’t writing that shit again, but it’s an awesome record and you should get it, fucko. What I will do is step back in time and let you know about Abysmal Dawn’s debut album “From Ashes”. Guess what? It’s pretty fucken good too. The band has progressed a good way from their inception six years ago, but “From Ashes” is still a record worth owning if you like ze metal ov death.

Go right to the blistering “Servants to their knees” for the pick of the litter on “From Ashes”. While the band is doing nothing insanely new or groundbreaking, the blasting, fills, riffs, and overall feel of the song is top notch. Abysmal Dawn know how to mix it up and do something that is more than just a four-minute long blastfest. They are technical enough to be interesting, but not over the top with a case of metal schizophrenia. Case in point, the crushing “Solitude’s demise” where Abysmal Dawn Detergent proove they’ve got the groove and can excel and slow and high speeds. However, most of the songs on here are decently fast and will satisfy your need to scrotum-crushing pain. “Salting the earth” takes it to your brain right from the get-go.

Charles Elliot does well in both his roles; his deep, guttural vocals match the music well and are not overdone or overproduced and he definitely knows how to right a catchy riff or ten. There are lots of guitar lines in here that make me think of “Negation”-era Decapitated which should perk up the boners of several people that troll the waters of Global Domination. Terry Bajaras delivers the expected excellent performance on drums. As far as filler and low points go, there really aren’t any. This is an album that can easily flow from beginning to end and be enjoyed.

There is alot of Suffocation love going on here too, but Abysmal Dawn manage to add enough of a modern style and sound to the classic format laid down by the masters of old to stand on their own. As I’m writing this, I am preparing to actually see these guys live in just a few hours. I am sure I will pick up the band’s newest “Leveling the Plane of Existence” and drop a coverage on it as well. Absymal Dawn tread the waters between the oceans of standard, heavy death metal a la Facebreaker, Grave, Obituary and tech-death in the vein of Psycroptic, Necrophagist, and Soreption. That’s a good place to be and Abysmal Dawn are damn fucken good at what they do. What keeps “From Ashes” out of the 8-10 range? A lack of variation and some uninspired song arrangements hold things back just a little from that top tier of scores. This record’s follow-up “Programmed to Consume” is tits and I am expecting more of the same from their newest. Still, “From Ashes” stands on its own as a solid debut record by one of the best death metal bands to come out in the past few years.

- Information
- Released: 2006
- Label: Crash Music
- Website: www.abysmaldawn.com
- Band
- Charles Elliot: guitars, vocals
- Jamie Boulanger: guitars
- Terry Barajas: drums

- Tracklist
- 01. Impending Doom
- 02. In the Hands of Death
- 03. Blacken the Sky
- 04. Servants to Their Knees
- 05. Wicked Impulse
- 06. Solitude’s Demise
- 07. State of Mind
- 08. Salting the Earth
- 09. Crown Desire