My first experience of this US death metal band was a reissue of “From Ashes” in 2012 which was originally released in 2006. Since that time the band has released a further three albums containing their own blend of melodic technical death metal that harbour a sense of futurism yet retaining the core essentials of death metal. It has been six years since the bands last album which is an eternity in music terms even though the band has been very active, according to the promo info, on the live front. That being said the band fires on every eight cylinders it offers on this fifth album of sumptuous brutal technical dexterity that begins with “Mundane Existence” and its brief opening sample style intro before the literal detonation of speed and hyper-blasting ferocity. There is a frenzied aura to the album created by the constantly changing riffs and tempos as the album continues with “The Path Of The Totalitarian”. The awesome drum fill start catalyses the explosion of blast beat as the riffs are fired out remorselessly within the bands obliterating armoury.
Comparatively the band has hints of Hate Eternal and Decapitated due to the technical prowess and unerring brutality as a caustic abrasive riff greets you on “A Speck In The Fabric Of Eternity” where the song shifts to a very catchy foundation courtesy of the strafing double kick that thunders through the song. Again that frenetic nature is held aloft as the song twists through spiralling riff changes and a deluging blast bombardment as the battery continues into “Coerced Evolution” where we see a very pronounced Decapitated like influence due to the stop-start riffing sequence that has hints of their song “Spheres Of Madness” making the tune extremely catchy indeed.
The dense affront of “Soul-Sick Nation” has tenets of Morbid Angel circa the “Domination” era where the tar like slowness oozes malevolent grisliness that again is ultra-catchy and links into the slightly longer closer “The Lament Of Configuration” where an isolated riff tinged with a blackened ethos is unveiled. A slower track with a saturation in mood the song channels its energy down a double bass cascade that envelops the song in asphyxiating penetration. Tagged onto the end of the album is a fine cover of Death’s “Flattening Of Emotions” from their “Human” release. Honouring the song without diverting into any extraneous trickery is the best way to play a song that is already brilliant as whilst the density is increased the technical riffing gymnastics are fully celebrated and ends this album in superb fashion leaving you in no doubt that Abysmal Dawn has returned with a dazzling new album whose title suggests a new beginning for this formidable technical death metal act.
(9/10 Martin Harris)
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