Abigail Williams - In the Shadow of a Thousand Suns Review
by Mark Hensch
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Reading the press release for this album, one cannot help expecting a black metal version of Job for a Cowboy. The clipping touts Abigail Williams' number of EPs sold, Myspace friends, and album credentials in way that simply must be noted for the parallel. Unlike Job for a Cowboy's floundering attempts at death metal, however, Abigail Williams have some substance in their attack.
The question is how much. Over the course of their debut full length In the Shadow of a Thousand Suns, Abigail Williams do a number of things I enjoy and a number of things I do not. With all this in mind, this review should be read as a (hopefully) unbiased analysis, the likes of which praises and criticizes in equal measure.
As I said, there is much that is likable about Suns. For starters, the production is loud and polished, giving listeners plenty of ferocity. When utilized properly, it allows Abigail Williams the ability to play their instruments with a cold, clear sheen, the likes of which is as black as pure ebony. "The World Beyond," for example, cuts with chilling melodies that would do later-era Emperor proud. "Into the Ashes," meanwhile, begins with somber piano keys only to launch off into vortexes of blistering guitar solos and icy, Dimmu Borgir breakdowns.
Also commendable is the session drumming of Trym Torson (formerly of Emperor and Zyklon-B for all you noobs). As expected, Trym plays nothing but face-erasing blastbeats interspersed with tons of technical wizardry. Given the crystalline sound backing the man's hellish drumming here, it truly is a pleasure to hear him bashing skins full tilt.
Such compliments do not exonerate Suns from several glaring flaws however. Foremost is the band's excessive use of keys. Unlike some black metal elitists, the notion of symphonic black metal usually does not bother me. On this album, however, it does, what with Abigail Williams constantly lacing their supposedly misanthropic black metal with keys more at home in a heartwarming Nintendo soundtrack. Put bluntly, the key effects often sound hollow, fake, or forced, meshing with the rest of the music poorly at best. It is an aspect of the band which definitely fails more than it works.
Beyond this, once one takes Trym away from the picture, there is a lot of this which gravitates far from black metal. There is that aforementioned breakdown in "Into the Ashes," a thrash riff or two in "Empyrean: Into the Cold Wastes" and tons of keyboard runs that remind me more of Sonata Arctica than Satyricon. This bothers me for two key reasons. The first is that such disparate elements are not always handled deftly by the band and often detract from the goodness that is on Suns. The second is that at the end of the day, this is what a bunch of idiotic people are going to consider the pinnacle of black metal, and that annoys me from both a personal and professional standpoint. This is a decidedly modern take on the genre, one of which might neuter its traditional rawness and bite if taken into the wrong hands (i.e. impressionable kids). Hell, is there even a drummer who can adequately fill in for Trym on the next album and tours?
At the end of the day an album like In the Shadow of a Thousand Suns is a love or hate affair. There is much here that will offend purist black metal fans and older metalheads. On the other hand, there is plenty of music here which will appeal to younger people or those with open minds. Personally speaking, I am somewhere in the middle. Either way, despite having a Thousand Suns behind them, Abigail Williams' latest burns only as bright as the eye of the beholder.
Abigail Williams' In the Shadow of a Thousand Suns
I
The World Beyond
Acolytes
A Thousand Suns
Into the Ashes
Smoke and Mirrors
A Semblance of Life
Empyrean: Into the Cold Wastes
Floods
The Departure
CD Info and Links
Abigail Williams - In the Shadow of a Thousand Suns Rating:7.5
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