WOE

Both death metal and progressive rock are top tier achievements in their respective worlds. Death metal takes all the elements of the metal universe and fine polishes them into visual gems albeit in the most hideous ways possible. Progressive rock on the other hand inserts complexities imported from classical music, jazz and any other experimental wild ride into its mix. Both genres are revered most of all for the virtuosity of the performers and also for the emotional responses that obviously evoke different sides of the spectrum. Progressive death metal is a whole other beast reserved for only a scant few bands that have mastered both these disparate realms but given its such a tightrope act to walk, few indeed succeed in unifying this beauty and beast scenario.

When you hear progressive death metal, of course Sweden's Opeth immediately comes to mind with other superb artists such as Ne Obliviscarius, Disillusion, Black Crown Initiate, Hath, early Cynic and Fallujah coming to mind. Well here's yet another. AN ABSTRACT ILLUSION is another brilliant act that marries the Swedish death metal scene with its scorching hot prog world. This band which has actually been around since 2007 formed in the northern city of Luleå and has seen quite a few lineup changes in its sixteen years existence. The band released one EP and two albums with the latest simply titled WOE hitting the world in September 2022. While the debut EP "Atonement Is Nigh" featured five members, the band's two proper albums have been whittled down to only the trio of Robert Stenvall (keyboards, vocals), Christian Berglönn (drums, vocals) and Karl Westerlund (guitars, bass).

WOE will cost you roughly an hour of your life with its seven tracks taking you on an atmospheric progressively blackened death metal journey but it very much succeeds in taking you into a world that you haven't quite visited. Sure all the boxes are check off. Death metal growls, blastbeats, ferocious guitar riffing all rolled out in sprawling proggy magnanimity. Sounding more like Ne Obliviscarius than Opeth, AN ABSTRACT ILLUSION is a bit more daring and experimental than Sweden's most famous proggy death metal act. This band adopts tricks and tickets form the entire world of progressive metal with healthy doses of clean vocals with accompanying harmonies, Cynic-like vocoder vocal moments and varying musical motifs that offer a nice even-handed exchange between blistering melodic blackened death metal, cleaner prog metal as well as a backdrop drenched in synth-rich atmospheric that often extend into the forefront. Virtuosic keyboard runs oft yank the band out of the death metal arena and into the world of symphonic prog.

Like any good proggy death metal, AN ABSTRACT ILLUSION has learned how to take all the disparate elements and paint its canvass carefully as not to overwhelm to the point where everything becomes a big muddy muck. Based more on melodic death rather than tech death, AN ABSTRACT ILLUSION forsakes the technicalities and neoclassical shredding of bands like Ne Obliviscarius so it can ramp up the atmospheric melodic attributes. The synergizing effects of the outro of "Prosperity" and the opening sequence of "Blomsterkrans" for example, find the band nursing a melancholic classic arpeggiated piano melody into excitable states made all the richer by spacey ambience and lugubrious contrapuntal instrumentation. All in all the death metal seems subordinate to the progressive rock underpinnings rather than the band taking on the brutality of say Morbid Angel or tech gurus Gorguts. This was designed for crossover appeal but only for those who have swallowed the bitter death metal pill.

While i wouldn't go as far as claiming AN ABSTRACT ILLUSION has matched the superb performances of Opeth's top dogs or Ne Obliviscarius's excellent debut "Portal Of I," i will say that WOE is indeed a worthy investment of your attention if the world of progressive death metal is your bailiwick. While i'm a huge fan of both death metal and progressive rock, i have to admit that the two together rarely work for me. It's always too this or too that for my liking and often the harsh elements just don't jive well with the pacifying aspects. AN ABSTRACT ILLUSION has done well in crafting a nice middle ground between the two worlds and i can understand why this album has gotten the attention that it has in a short time. Overall an impressive second album that displays a band that has found its own avenue into the demanding world of prog death metal.

There are a lot of proggy melodic death metal bands from Sweden. Many can run together or simply sound like Opeth clones, but there are some acts that manage to stand out from the crowd. One such band is An Abstract Illusion. In addition to all the genre hallmarks, this band does an excellent job of integrating bits of non-metallic styles to keep their songs fresh and interesting.

Woe, the band's second full-length release, is a massive hourlong piece subdivided into seven more-digestible tracks. The sound palette of this album ranges from archetypal melodeath guitar leads to hints of dark jazz, dashes of electronica, and classic prog flashiness.

The album opens with an eerie, atmospheric synth drone and haunting piano notes. "The Behemoth That Lies Asleep" is a gentle yet ominous opening to this opus. When the guitars finally enter, their tone fits this album's title in a wrenching, melodic passage. Lightly processed vocals strongly reminiscent Paul Masvidal's signature Vocoder lead into "Slaves", this album's first proper song.

Hammering drums, squealing guitars, and hoarse vocals kick this song off with dark urgency. The lead guitar and keyboard parts remain clear above the murky, gurgling death metal backing, and the contrast of growled and clean vocals is balanced wonderfully. In a more atmospheric moment, the bass gets a turn in the spotlight that is followed by some very pretty, delicate piano. As the song enters its second half, this band's Opeth-isms become more evident, though they're neither derivative nor distracting.

"Tear Down This Holy Mountain" starts with calm following the closing guitar solo of "Slaves". Clarinet is deployed smartly in this passage; its reediness imbues the music with a certain spookiness. The composition increases in intensity with the recitation of a spoken-word passage, and soon this song has transformed into a raging storm. There are some strong David Gilmour nods in the guitar solo of this song's first half, and the particular organ tone backing it further underscores the Pink Floyd influence. Electronic elements support a slower movement starting around the song's midpoint. This guitar solo overstays its welcome however and begins to grow tedious by its end, but this is one of relatively few moments of excess on Woe. The song ends strong, though. Vocoded vocals show up yet again, and the momentum of the closing movement is powerful.

An off-kilter guitar line, clean vocals, and stabs of piano open "Prosperity" on a strongly melodic note. There are some rather sweet vocal harmonies deployed as the distorted guitars grow louder and more enveloping. There is a tension between hopefulness and grim distortion that endures the entirety of this song, and it's a wonderful balance that the band strikes.

"Blomsterkrans" is definitely the weakest track on the album. It's not even bad, but this six-minute interlude of Swedish narration over mournful piano and cello could have been cut down to half its length while retaining the intended impact.

What follows is the album's longest song, the 14-minute "In the Heavens Above, You Will Become a Monster". Stampeding drums and blistering guitars open this cut, providing a wonderful contrast to the preceding quietness. This song is full of plenty of changes in rhythm, tempo, and mood; and the performances are fantastic. The soloing is fittingly flashy and dramatic, and the way synth leads are incorporated is great. The song's second half is cleaner and more hopeful, featuring a guest vocalist.

Acoustic guitar and airy synth pads open the closing song, "This Torment Has No End, Only New Beginnings". Once metallic elements return to the music, the guitar line has quite a bit of warmth, though there is an edge of bitterness to it. The song's second half feels as if it loses focus a bit, but the individual elements are strong enough that I'm happy to overlook that.

Woe is a fitting addition to Sweden's already-stellar legacy of progressive death metal. It might not quite be on par with Crimson or Ghost Reveries, but the music here is great. It's intelligent, powerful, artful, and unpredictable.

Review originally posted here: theeliteextremophile.com/2022/10/24/album-review-an-abstract-illusion-woe/