End All Life (2010)

In the beginning there was… …something…

In the end there will probably be… …nothing…

And in between all this, there’s time. Time to do something. Time to do nothing. Time to spend 38+ minutes together with Abigor, over and over again. Time to be confused, to think, to rethink, to destroy, to built up…

A musician whose name will remain unknown wrote me that “what apparently seems like a dump, where the garbage is crushed, slowly develops into organized chaos”. And he’s right. The first few times I spinned the wheel I did not really know what to think. In fact, I didn’t think much. I rather felt. And I felt confusion. I raised the question, “is there any meaning behind this or is this just music taken to new limits of what we recognize as something related to black metal?”. Yes, the music is different, challenging and original. After the band’s brilliant “Fractal Possession” I didn’t know what to expect, despite the rumours about a split with Blacklodge that was in the making and that Abigor’s part would be two tracks with several minutes spinning time. But this?

“TIME…” exceeds everything I could imagine. If I had ever tried to imagine something. This is exactly how I like my music. Instead of writing songs, I want bands to write journeys. Preferably into darker domains. Yes, I do like my progressive rock but knowing that three of my favourite albums count in Deathspell Omega “FAS…”, Devil Doll “Dies Irae” and Mayhem “Ordo Ad Chao”, I guess it’s obvious that I prefer musical rides without choruses and too many repetitions. And now, let’s count in Abigor’s “TIME Is The Sulphur In The Veins Of The Saint” into that favourite list.

There are many really cool parts throughout these 38+ minutes. And there are sections, small passages and surprising twists all the time. At the same time, and this is the crucial point, what seems like one part thrown into a big can together with many others is not that. These two tracks journey through different musical landscapes before each part ends… …falling… Yes, we all fall…

Abigor states, with the help of Einstein, that “Time is Satan´s way of keeping everything from happening at once”. As my music friend says to this quote; “This can actually be a suggestion to how to approach the release. You have to invest time, much time, to dwell within these realms. And then praise the dark one because there’s no way you can digest this in one listen only. Everything does not happen at once…”. Now, some 50 spins later I can only concur to these words of wisdom.

I’m no musician. But my friend, the musician, says that, “the drums and the bass dominate the soundpicture. At the same time the old school crunchguitars fights with 70’s horror synth. And, when the band finds it necessary, they give room for heavy guitars as well. The use of B2 Hammond organ also adds to the timelessness of the album. The overall sound gives me a strong spirit of the 70’s, but together with modern black metal the whole release becomes absurd yet genuine as well as ingenious…”. In a way, from my point of view, “TIME…” feels like a timeless album going back and forth, bringing in even techno elements we remember from the 90’s. Something is clearly black metal from the 90’s, other sections will be nodded to in 2020. Where Dødheimsgard’s “666 International” took its turn bringing standard black metal into the new Millennium, Abigor’s “TIME Is The Sulphur In The Veins Of The Saint” opens up 2010 with big hopes for black metal’s future.

I will not say anything about the lyrics. They have to be read, interpreted and digested when you have the CD or preferably split-LP in your hands. But I can tell you what I feel now that I have listened to these two tracks over and over again the last few weeks. I feel completely drained. Despite that I now, finally, manage to enjoy every single second of the album, I feel no joy. I don’t want to smile. I don’t want to meet any friends. I don’t want to go for a walk. All I want to do is to hide in the corner, in the darkness, with the blanket keeping the outside world away.

I don’t want to be disturbed at all while I listen. At the same time I want someone to come and save me from this...

www.myspace.com/abigorhorde
www.e-a-l.com

Composed by Roy Kristensen