Absorb - SMOG

 

 

Absorb - SMOG
Hypaethral Records - 2024
Blackened Doom
Rated: ****

First: build yourself a safe and secure hiding place not far from where you live/are.
Second: make sure there's an easily accessible escape route, devoid of any obstacles, to reach said hiding place in case of an emergency.
Third: brace yourself (figuratively)
Fourth: pray to the god, deity or entity of your choice. If you're an atheist: good luck and start wishing you weren't one.
Fifth: take a deep breath.
Finally: play Absorb's new EP 'SMOG'.

I guess most of you will have read the instructions listed above by now, but probably haven't executed any of them, or at least not all of them and definitely not in the right order. Okay, when you firmly believe in a higher power, you most likely will already have said a little prayer today, and you might even have taken a deep breath, but will that be enough to protect you from the sheer terror Absorb is about to unleash upon you? Probably not.

Three tracks of slow, creepy doom music that doesn't split your head in two. No, it straps you to a torture machine to slowly, but surely -maybe even a bit sadistically- suck the life out of you and personally hand you over to the grim reaper, who then drops his captive (you) -as he should and like the nice bloke he is- right in front of the gates of hell. Get the picture?

'SMOG' is some of the scariest stuff you'll come across. And with a total running time of nearly 25 minutes, these Canadians use every moment to build the tension and grab the listener by the throat. Atmosphere is key here. No fancy guitar solos. And when anything remotely similar announces itself, it's more like a repetitive, brooding build-up to an essential scene in a horror movie than an actual guitar solo. Add to that the vocals that alternate between death metal growls, hardcore screams and black metal squeals, and you'll get an idea why the instructions at the top were there in the first place.

So, that's it. My job of warning you is done. I'm gonna run for my life now and suggest you do the same. Just don't forget to take a copy of Absorb's 'SMOG' with you, because you might want to listen to it again once you've reached your hiding place. If you get there at all...

(Written by Ronny Dijksterhuis)

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