Artist: Abysmal Grief
Country: Italy
Label: Avantgarde Music
Formats: LP / Cassette Tape / CD
Year: 2025
A few years ago, Abysmal Grief, one of the best Italian metal bands ever, signed with the Italian label Avantgarde Music. The first fruits of that collaboration came in the form of a compilation album and a live recording, both available only on vinyl. However, we had to wait for a full-length album, as we hadn’t had one since ‘Funeral Cult Of Personality’ was released in 2021. At the end of last year, we finally got our hands on ‘Taetra Philosophia’, the seventh album, but perhaps also the last, as the band apparently threw in the towel shortly after its release.
The seventh album, but in the intervening years since the predecessor to this new work was released in 2021, the band has released no fewer than seven compilations and live albums, so we haven’t been left completely empty-handed. And although some of those releases also contain material that was not previously released, it’s still not the same as a full album filled with the magical Doom Metal that only Abysmal Grief can deliver.
Whether this is truly the final chapter in a thirty-year doomed crusade remains to be seen, but if this is indeed Abysmal Grief’s last work, then their musical legacy has been crowned with one of their strongest albums. In fact, the band can be seen as one of the most musically consistent Doom Metal bands there ever was. When you listen back to the band’s very first steps and compare them to ‘Taetra Philosophia’, the differences are truly minimal.
The lion’s share still consists of the combination of slow riffs, iconic organ, and the iconic, mesmerizing vocals of Labes C. Necrothytus. Although not new to Abysmal Grief, the use of the violin, played here by Francine Boulert, stands out even more. The sinister and ghostly sounding instrument evokes memories of Saint-Saëns’ most haunting piece. The junior listener might confuse this unique blend with slow-paced Black Metal, but although the music evokes a somewhat similar atmosphere, Abysmal Grief’s music is deeply rooted in the tradition of Black Sabbath with a heavy emphasis on sacramental elements. Although I have developed a healthy aversion to the term “ritual” because many bands characterize their live performances as such, it applies to almost no other band as much as it does to Abysmal Grief. Each album is a mythical ritual with its own sound and feel, without sacrificing any of its unique recognizability.
