Artist: Abigail Williams
Title: A Void Within Existence
Type: Album
Label: Agonia Records
Abigail Williams have been causing serious ripples in the extreme metal underground for a long time now, having formed in 2004 and released their debut full length back in 2008. However, despite blistering live shows and a formidable back catalogue they have inexplicably not managed to penetrate the upper echelons of the scene. If there is any justice, that is about to change with ‘A Void Within Existence’, their strongest album to date and a slot at next year’s Fortress Festival, a rare date outside the US and their first time back in the UK for eight years.
It’s perhaps stating the obvious, but I should clarify that the band are named after one of the Machiavellian protagonists of the Salem witch trials rather than being named after a band member, and for clarity, you should not expect female vocals (as someone I played the album too proclaimed they had been expecting!). Instead Abigail Williams are purveyors of finest atmospheric, at times symphonic, black metal. Let’s be clear though, the emphasis here is on the black metal, with the symphonics playing a subtle role to augment the battery rather than becoming all consuming, and this album is unrelenting.
The album does not waste time with intros, launching straight into opening track ‘Life, Disconnected’, an intense, haunting groove laden barrage which continues on ‘Void Within’. The effect is a dense wall of glorious black metal. As the track unfolds, it slows a little before fading out to sinister white noise. ‘Nonexistence’ is a little more mid paced and builds around a grandiose melody, effortlessly switching from introspective melody to rampaging black metal and it is simply fantastic. The blueprint continues as the album builds and with each listen, more subtleties and detail come to the fore with this being one of those albums that rewards being listened to rather than just played in the background.
Things are brought to a close with the mammoth ‘Embrace the Chasm’ and ‘No Less Than Death’ (closing in at over eight and nine minutes respectively) with the latter being something of a curve ball as it opens with melancholic clean vocals before building towards a monolithic peak and ending things in a suitably dramatic fashion.
To put it simply, ‘A Void Within Existence’ is a masterpiece of modern day, atmospheric black metal. It is dense, intense and claustrophobic but also has epic melodies swirling within the glorious maelstrom. This is a must listen.
Andy Pountney @shot_in_the_dark_photography2
Walking The Liminal Space 