Review Summary: This is evil at its very best
Who could have foreseen such a rise in popularity of one of the Earth’s most frightful, gruesome and (let’s face it) satanic bands? With an image scary enough to haunt grown men and a sound even more fearsome, how have Norway’s Dimmu Borgir managed to attract a fresh, young audience with their latest devilish—and outrageously named—offering Abrahadabra?
Opening with the classical instrumental Xibir, it is clear that Galder, Shagrath and Silenoz are still venturing into the extreme and exotic reaches of black metal; especially with the inclusion of what sounds like a throat singer from an igloo in the Arctic Circle.
You can sense from the drama and outlandishness of this composition that the album is going to be a metal masterpiece.
A choir of Satan’s angels leads you into Born Treacherous, which is, as should be expected, a stunning array of harsh guitar and drum lines mixed with the growl of the iconic Shagrath—but still the riff is unforgettable in amongst the carnage.
Listening carefully, you can hear just how much effort and precision has gone into the production of this album. So many times the cocktail of hell raising thrash guitar and gargantuan orchestral background work managed to make my spine tingle, as if being touched by true evil. Though it is good evil.
Once again, the single Gateways is a crescendo of sounds taken from the deepest reaches of Middle Earth. The way the band have crafted such a titanic sound as well as providing listeners with hooks and melodies that beat the likes of Bullet For My Valentine, for example, is staggering. And when the female vocal explodes out of the speakers on the chorus, it is quite simply perfection.
“UNLOCK AND OPEN THE DOORS,” barks Shagrath, and so willingly we should because the more people that can experience this astonishing masterwork the better.
By far the best and most breathtaking song on the album, however, is the self titled Dimmu Borgir.
More monumental than anything else you will hear this year, it heavily chugs but at the same time soars like a Lord Of The Rings battle scene soundtrack. It has everything. Progressive drums, snarly vocals, an epic choir, a guitar solo and a typically thrilling outro in which the uplifting time change must be head-banged to.
God (or Satan) only knows what type of colossal live show these songs could create. Dimmu Borgir have changed styles dramatically with this new album, and they now certainly appeal to the new breed of kids—somehow! There is something very addictive and cool about listening to Abrahadabra, and that is very good news for black metal. There is even a possibility that it could hit the mainstream, knocking bands like A Day To Remember for six.
Genuinely, after listening to this album, it is hard to look back to the, in comparison, feeble attempts of hundreds of bands that are making a living at the moment. It is a fearless and pioneering album that could prove to be an ideal catalyst for people wanting to encounter black metal for the first time.
Just like Dimmu Borgir I urge you to “enter the supreme unknown”, and come face to face with the theme music to true evil. Good evil.
