Abysmal Torment
Incised Wound Suicide

I must say I was pleasantly surprised to listen to the debut Ep of these Abysmal Torment, a band hailing from the Island of Malta, just like the already more well-known 'Beheaded' reviewed by my colleague Tepes.

'Abysmal Torment' offers us an uncompromising Brutal Death Metal mostly indebted to the American school (Suffocation, Disgorge, Deeds Of Flesh, and Gorgasm just to name a few influences). Although they don't bring anything new, the band manages to entertain the listener with a powerful, fairly technical, and fast Brutal Death Metal.

The technical level of the band is medium-high, the guitar riffing is truly a punch, very powerful and it certainly reminds of the more inspired 'Disgorge'. The drumming is truly good, the drummer manages to alternate very fast blastbeats with less chaotic and more thoughtful parts, proving to be an excellent musician. The bassist also does an outstanding job, standing out in the various interludes with impactful bass breaks that contribute to making the work more dynamic and dispelling any boredom. The vocals are truly excellent as well, presumably taking inspiration from 'Dying Fetus'. The singer showcases a guttural growling, perhaps a bit too filtered with more typically Brutal tones. Naturally, these vocals contribute to making the work more varied and captivating. Raising the score of this EP, we find a really worthy production, and unlike many Brutal albums, we no longer have the drums overshadowing the work of all the other instrumentalists; instead, the various instruments can be heard very clearly and one can admire the powerful wall of sound of the Maltese band.

The lyrics naturally deal with all the imaginable and possible filth resulting in being useless. I don't really think anyone would consider buying this EP just for the lyrics. As I said before, it's the music that makes the difference. This EP will certainly not be a masterpiece but it remains a very good debut, not at all immature, that shows a band capable of earning a place on the scene. Their first album was recently released, really good but slightly inferior to this EP which contains 5 songs capable of making even the most skeptical death-head move to exhaustion.

"The massacre is all yours..." (cit. by matteo brutal)

Tracklist:

1. Vile putrescent dilapidated mortal remains lying in the morgue
2. Sawed in half
3. Showcase of Dangled Flesh
4. Incised Wound Suicide
5. Grotesquely maimed and cranially disfigured