Moonstruck Mercury
Listening through this album in full was a life-changing experience. The ending of Plutonian Gate is unreal.
Favorite track: Plutonian Gate.
Formed in 2016 as a shadowy single-man entity, Abduction have made astonishingly fast progress, carving a fearsome reputation for themselves as a standout act in an increasingly crowded extreme metal scene.
Performing alone in the early years – a rare sight, despite the many one-man bands in the genre – Abduction’s central protagonist A|V then expanded the band into a full live outfit, to better create intense, ritualistic and immersive performances, both at underground shows and larger festivals.
Cue the explosive 'Black Blood', Abduction’s most ambitious and rewarding album to date. Recorded – like its predecessor – by Ian Boult at Stuck on a Name Studios in Nottingham, this nightmarish yet entrancing listen is pushes Abduction into new territories without straying from their core sound. From the hypnotically earnest and haunting opener ‘In Exaltation of the Supreme Being’, to the expansive 11 minute epic ‘Plutonian Gate’, with its marked progressive and psychedelic overtones, to the blend of uncompromising stripped down black metal and slower, almost post-metal textures of ‘Psylocybic Death’, it is an intense and dynamic experience.
“I’m an avid listener of ‘raw’ black metal,” explains vocalist, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist A|V, “particularly the way that unintentional noise and lack of clarity can draw you in and provoke the imagination. On the other hand, the evolution of what Abduction has become requires something less indecipherable. With this record, I’ve implied a greater story, without explicitly describing each chapter.”
Thus 'Black Blood' draws both from the band’s roots and new inspirations. The fact that members of British black metal bands The Sun’s Journey Through the Night and Revenant Marquis appear is a welcome nod to where Abduction come from, yet the fact that the band are atypical for a UKBM act – no rousing odes to England or 90's Scandinavian formulas here – is perhaps their most precious attribute. Their distinctive qualities have also earnt them a place on the roster of one of extreme metal’s most famous labels, Candlelight Records, a definite milestone.
“Before this album was recorded, I knew I wanted to step things up a few notches in terms of taking this vision to a wider audience,” A|V states. “Candlelight approached me – indirectly, as they didn’t know who I was behind the mask – and offered a deal that more than meets where I want to take this project. Rather than continue to exist in the well-established sphere I’ve grown comfortable in, I decided that now is the time to take a leap into the unknown. Much like the narratives of the songs, there is both trepidation and elation. Time will be the judge…”
Limited splatter/Orange+Black vinyl pressing
Artwork by Fillipe Froeder @arcano.xv
Layout by Dan Capp
*Please note image is a mock up only, actual colours may vary on finished product*
Tracklisting
Side A:
1. Kernos Crown
2. Dismantling The Corpse Of Demeter
3. Plutonian Gate
Side B:
4. Lightness At The Grand Conjunction
5. A Psylacybic Death
6. In Exaltation Of The Supreme Being
Includes unlimited streaming of Black Blood
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Formed in 2016 as a shadowy single-man entity, Abduction have made astonishingly fast progress, carving a fearsome reputation for themselves as a standout act in an increasingly crowded extreme metal scene.
Performing alone in the early years – a rare sight, despite the many one-man bands in the genre – Abduction’s central protagonist A|V then expanded the band into a full live outfit, to better create intense, ritualistic and immersive performances, both at underground shows and larger festivals.
Cue the explosive 'Black Blood', Abduction’s most ambitious and rewarding album to date. Recorded – like its predecessor – by Ian Boult at Stuck on a Name Studios in Nottingham, this nightmarish yet entrancing listen is pushes Abduction into new territories without straying from their core sound. From the hypnotically earnest and haunting opener ‘In Exaltation of the Supreme Being’, to the expansive 11 minute epic ‘Plutonian Gate’, with its marked progressive and psychedelic overtones, to the blend of uncompromising stripped down black metal and slower, almost post-metal textures of ‘Psylocybic Death’, it is an intense and dynamic experience.
“I’m an avid listener of ‘raw’ black metal,” explains vocalist, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist A|V, “particularly the way that unintentional noise and lack of clarity can draw you in and provoke the imagination. On the other hand, the evolution of what Abduction has become requires something less indecipherable. With this record, I’ve implied a greater story, without explicitly describing each chapter.”
Thus 'Black Blood' draws both from the band’s roots and new inspirations. The fact that members of British black metal bands The Sun’s Journey Through the Night and Revenant Marquis appear is a welcome nod to where Abduction come from, yet the fact that the band are atypical for a UKBM act – no rousing odes to England or 90's Scandinavian formulas here – is perhaps their most precious attribute. Their distinctive qualities have also earnt them a place on the roster of one of extreme metal’s most famous labels, Candlelight Records, a definite milestone.
“Before this album was recorded, I knew I wanted to step things up a few notches in terms of taking this vision to a wider audience,” A|V states. “Candlelight approached me – indirectly, as they didn’t know who I was behind the mask – and offered a deal that more than meets where I want to take this project. Rather than continue to exist in the well-established sphere I’ve grown comfortable in, I decided that now is the time to take a leap into the unknown. Much like the narratives of the songs, there is both trepidation and elation. Time will be the judge…”
Artwork by Fillipe Froeder @arcano.xv
Layout by Dan Capp
Includes unlimited streaming of Black Blood
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
“Black Blood is an affirmation of the path that strives towards the balance of chaos and order in an era of disjointed and deliberate distraction. With ‘Kernos Crown’, the first track on Black Blood, there is an acceptance of all that is malevolent in the struggle for sleep. The necessity of the darkness and the imperative process that overcomes horrors and demons, by exalting and joining them at the altar of wisdom. To face death and no longer be afraid.”
Formed in 2016 as a shadowy single-man entity, Abduction have made astonishingly fast progress, carving a fearsome reputation for themselves as a standout act in an increasingly crowded extreme metal scene.
Performing alone in the early years – a rare sight, despite the many one-man bands in the genre – Abduction’s central protagonist A|V then expanded the band into a full live outfit, to better create intense, ritualistic and immersive performances, both at underground shows and larger festivals.
The forthcoming release of Black Blood sees Abduction’s most ambitious and rewarding album to date. Recorded – like its predecessor, 2019’s All Pain As Penance – by Ian Boult at Stuck on a Name Studios in Nottingham, this nightmarish yet entrancing listen pushes Abduction into new territories without straying from their core sound. From the hypnotically earnest and haunting opener ‘In Exaltation of the Supreme Being’, to the expansive 11-minute epic ‘Plutonian Gate’, with its marked progressive and psychedelic overtones, to the blend of uncompromising, stripped-down black metal and slower, almost post-metal textures of ‘A Psylacybic Death’, it is an intense and dynamic experience.
Black Blood draws both from the band’s roots and new inspirations. The fact that members of British black metal bands The Sun’s Journey Through the Night and Revenant Marquis appear is a welcome nod to where Abduction come from, yet the fact that the band are atypical for a UKBM act – no rousing odes to England or 90s Scandinavian formulas here – is perhaps their most precious attribute. Their distinctive qualities have also earnt them a place on the roster of one of extreme metal’s most famous labels, Candlelight Records, a definite milestone.
“Before this album was recorded, I knew I wanted to step things up a few notches in terms of taking this vision to a wider audience,”A|V states. “Candlelight approached me – indirectly, as they didn’t know who I was behind the mask – and offered a deal that more than meets where I want to take this project. Rather than continue to exist in the well-established sphere I’ve grown comfortable in, I decided that now is the time to take a leap into the unknown. Much like the narratives of the songs, there is both trepidation and elation. Time will be the judge…”
credits
released October 21, 2022
All music, instruments, lyrics and vocals written and performed by A|V except drums, recorded by Adam Grace.
Guest vocals on 'In Exaltation of the Supreme Being' by No One (The Sun's Journey Through The Night) and on 'A Psylacybic Death' by RM (Revenant Marquis). Recorded by Ian Boult between 2 days in June 2021.
Mastered by Dovydas Auglys
Special thanks to Darren Toms and Candlelight for this opportunity.
This album absolutely kills it. Top notch badassery all the way through. Some of the best metal I've heard, and a supremely impressive debut!
I will absolutely be preordering Blackbraid II as soon as it's available. Joel
The intro riff to Frigid and Spellbound is insanely good. Would recommend that everyone on this planet listen to it and experience this amazing album for themselves 🖤 Ensomhed
Five years after The Dreaming I, this follow-up continues the terrifying and wondrous music of Naas Alcameth's nightmarish shadow realms, creating one of the most innovative and fascinating sounds in extreme metal. 'Ephialtes' is absolutely sensational, opening with incredible power, and building to one of the album's highlights starting at 1:31. 'Incubatio' is equally cataclysmic, with its dark ambient intro, followed by blistering blast beats, until the apocalyptic shriek at 2:51 — unreal! Obsidian One
The spirit returns in one of the most important albums in recent metal history. 'Moss Covered Bones' at 8:01 — can you feel it? Krieger channels the fierce soul of his heritage, with echoes of generations of oppression and resilience, rising again through the raw, rebellious power of black metal, with stunning acoustic beauty as well. Do you see it? Do you hear it? Hail to the witch hawk and the force he brings to the scene! Obsidian One
