There is just something instantly scathing about average-to-poor Death Metal. Reliance on blast beats, a muffled and indecipherable guitar tone, and monotone vocals. It is excusable to have a lo-fi tone in Black Metal, as atmosphere is the key and atonality is what establishes the bleak environ. Yes, it is challenging to shred, blast the way the drummers do, and growl those vocals, but being able to do that is like saying you can make a lay-up so now you can compete in the NBA. Abominant are Death Metal band that have been going at it for a few years now. They are the only Death Metal band I have seen from Kentucky, the home of Bluegrass music and my high school football coach.

This is their 9th studio album in 14 years, displaying a decent work ethic. Abominant are akin to the nonstop blasting style of the likes of Malevolent Creation.

The album begins with a movie clip which I am assuming is from something surrounding Stalingrad (perhaps Enemy At the Gates?) due to the sounds of WWII era Stuka bombers zooming by, the rattle of the MG-42’s, and the discussion of defeating Fascism. This clip precedes Baptized by Steel, a decent opener, but without much invention. There is formulaic Death Metal by the likes of Deicide and Cannibal Corpse and then there are bands that just cannot break the cycle. Death Metal does not require invention, nor does it require something new, but there has to be a reevaluation of sound and riff structure. Exhibit A: Opus Mortis VIII by Vomitory. Nothing done there has not been heard before, but due to the structural differentiation in the riffs and songs along with little bells and whistles the album turned out to be a true winner. Baptized by Steel has a really nice and heavy intro following the Stalingrad bit but gravitates to a facet of Death Metal openers that tends to frustrate me. The intro immediately enters a string of blast beats.

Blast beats are a necessity to Extreme Metal, but when your album is reliant upon said beat, and almost all of your songs begin with them, it grows stale upon first listen. The lyrics surround your typical themes: apocalyptic words, warfare, destruction, death etc. What makes this album something I want to get through quickly is not because it is bad or good, but because it has been done a thousand times over. Where Demons Dwell. is just another run of the mill Death Metal album with its moments here and there. Bloodland has some really catchy verse and chorus riffs with some nicer percussive moments however it is impossible to notice that most of the vocals are sung off time here. This is basic knowledge. The first thing we are taught is timing! After the less than stellar Baptized by Steel, Bloodland offers us an encouraging sign of the band maturing beyond the first track. This illusion is put to rest when another salvo of blast beats is laid under a nearly identical riff on Firestorm.

Rain of Ash is yet another blast beat-fest with an improved riff bordering on the lines of Black Metal. A little harmonization adds an interesting direction to this riff.

Each song continues along in the same vein. A little slower moment here, a lot of blast beats, muddy and poorly played guitars with almost nothing but tremolo picking, bad rhythmic timing on the vocals, and an overall complacency with being another in the pack. Nobody remembers who finished 15th in a marathon of 30 runners. The boredom factor of this album grew far too fast for me to enjoy this at all. It is not necessarily bad, just definitely not worth your time. There will be better Death Metal released soon and there were better albums released already this year.