Album Review: Wombbath - Beyond The Abyss
Reviewed by Sam Jones
When I saw Wombbath were preparing to release a new album I knew I had to get on board with it. Formed way back in 1988 originally as The Shadows, from Västmanland, Sweden, the band changed their name to Seizure by 1990 and within the same year altered it again to Wombbath. Once 1992 rolled round the band were releasing their first Demo and EP, which was soon succeeded by a Split with Psychosis and Burial a year later. Finally, by early 1993, Wombbath were ready for their first, and for an extensive time their only, studio album titled Internal Caustic Torments. An EP in 1994 followed suit otherwise they split up in 1995. This was the case for years until 2014 where the gears were finally rolling again, where we find ourselves in the most active time in the band’s history. A comeback record, Downfall Rising, was released in 2015, with numerous Splits afterwards, and another studio album, The Great Desolation, coming out in 2018. The band were on fire by now; 2020 saw two records, Choirs Of The Fallen and Tales Of Madness, then another album, Agma, released in 2021, a personal favourite of mine by the band. Since then the band have busy with an EP, a Compilation and recently a Single. Wombbath are hardly still and now poised to release their seventh full length record: Beyond The Abyss. Their first record release through Pulverised Records, Beyond The Abyss is due out March 14th.
Though I’d prefer bands to get their records moving with all due haste, I appreciate the string sections Wombbath throw into their opening; it really lends the idea that they’re welcoming us back for another round of Swedish death metal. More importantly the band have gone to great lengths to give their sound a crisp and clear shine by which their performance comes towards us. Swedish death metal can sometimes be misconstrued as only being this dirty, ravaged, buzzsaw-bladed soundscape, so to hear such a polished mix whereby you can hear the dissipating riffs and prolonged vocal cries is a little thing, but does much to give the record additional dimension. Modern production values are certainly aiding the band as they have done so throughout Agma, for their mixing process has enabled them to effectively highlight what parts of the band you should take particular notice of. This can be via the vocals coming into play or perhaps the riffs have been given greater prominence; whatever it is, Wombbath are always pinpointing where you should be looking. Granted, they want you to take in all that’s possible but by focusing your attention it allows you to form a stronger grasp on the songwriting.
I’ve been listening to Wombbath for many years now and they’ve only continued to become stronger and more adept in writing death metal. However the guitar tone applied for this record feels especially distinct as they don’t feel to be vying for anything dirty; I’d argue the crust style is a result of their desire to coat their record with coarse, scraping aesthetics. The soloing is beautifully clear albeit with a warped slant to it but, whilst you’re listening to the majority of riffs, their guitar attack is pretty scathing for it does feel like they’ve thrown sand and grit across their instruments, giving them this rough and hardened texture. As a result, the polished production may convey their performance with some of the band’s most coherently written work but the general vibe picked up hasn’t gone away. Wombbath have managed to retain the violence inherent in their sound without compromising entirely for the sake of production values.
If you’re a longtime fan of Wombbath like I am, you know what you’re in for. The band aren’t the kind who will suddenly break into a ballad or slow their songwriting down to establish a radically different feel to their performance. The band are here for death metal, as you are yourself, but that doesn’t mean they’re not implementing ideas and themes that can’t take you by surprise. Those string sections aforementioned rear themselves once or twice again across the record, so they become more than merely an opening aesthetic but a record structural choice that binds whatever track you’re listening to, towards the beginning and end. They may well be more melodic phases thrown in, nothing too great, but enough to demonstrate that one track is certainly removed from the others, and by doing so elevates such a track beyond the rank and file of contemporary death metal because now Wombbath’s sound is taking on far more of its own life. In fact, with each track, Wombbath incorporate something into their songwriting to give weight and identity to each track; what one feels isn’t so memorable might be deemed as the best on the album by someone else, it really is down to subjective opinions. Myself? I think many tracks herein are impressive and whilst we know what Wombbath will be dishing out, I applaud them for still wanting to do so much nearly forty years after their formation.
One can say the record has a great deal of momentum. The band play with speed as their forte but that’s not the sole reason this record feels to have a strong pace to it; I’d argue the bass is just as strong a reason why. It’s great to hear such a profound bass presence on record whether we’re discussing the bass playing of Matt Davidson or the bass drumming from Antti Silventoinen (his first album credit with the band no less), and couple these together and you have a bass presence that gives Beyond The Abyss this massively heightened sense of scope without the band needing to press themselves overtly so on your senses. Therefore, as the band play on, you understand the guitar work alone isn’t the lone force propelling the band along their way but a healthy combination of all vocal and instrumental powers coming together, outlining their performance with greater size and strength than simply applying some crushing or cavernous tone. Throughout their career, Beyond The Abyss certainly feels to be the grandest and most volatile record Wombbath have yet released.
In conclusion, Wombbath continue to be an exceptional force of Swedish death metal and a hideously underrated act. There aren’t many bands in extreme metal where you can actively track a band’s continuous improvement throughout their successive records but Wombbath are one of them. Since their 2015 album revival we have only seen the band release and improve time and again and though their 1993 album debut is seen as this classic edifice of extreme metal I think we mustn’t be blinded by rose-tinted glasses. The band are easily in their golden era right now, producing and unleashing death metal that still takes the new guard to school. Granted, Wombbath only sport the singular original member today but that influence still matters for bringing on the right people to Wombbath’s side. It’s a real slab of death metal doing what death metal should provide but there’s still a real abundance in material that will engage and enthral fans within Beyond The Abyss. Whether we’re viewing this from the perspective of orchestral sequences, melodic segments, steadier songwriting etc Wombbath have more than plenty to make this record worthwhile. Whenever I see Wombbath have a new album on the horizon I’m always filled with glee and, once more, my excitement has been justified.
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