Absu

How fitting that I write the entry for the mighty ABSU a mere two weeks or so after the band has announced their breakup!  One of the all-time great American black metal acts is no more.

Absu originally formed in 1989 in Dallas, Texas, as extreme speed metal band Dolmen. Taking their name from the Breton word for a type of tomb, their interest in all things Celtic was thus evident pretty early.  Their style drew heavily on thrash and death metal bands like Destruction, Death, Kreator, Sodom, and Slayer. Within a year, they had changed their name to Azathoth . By 1991, they had changed their name yet again---to Absu.

Stylistically, as Absu had evolved from Dolmen and Azathoth, they evolved from a band that clearly flirted with the line separating thrash and death metal to one being squarely in the death metal camp. Their early demo material was fast, brutal death metal that compares favorably to work by the early genre masters---think Suffocation meets Cannibal Corpse. It was quality stuff that honestly still holds up today---but it wasn't black metal. That being said, the lyrics were not the gore and death-obsessed fare we associate with much of death metal. The band---even this early on---were including occultic, magickal, necromantic themes in their lyrics, as well as drawing on ancient polytheistic paganism for inspiration. It was after the release of the 1992 EP Temples of Offal, however, that the direction of the band changed forever.

Here is the complete Temples of Offal EP---note the raw death metal sound!

It was in 1992 that founding members Equitant and Shaftiel recruited Mysticia (guitars), Black Massith (synths), and Proscriptor McGovern (drums, and eventually, vocals). Proscriptor would eventually take over the reins as chief songwriter and the mastermind behind some of the band's more elaborate conceptual works. The band's sound began to evolve even further. An official bootleg compilation of some live songs---entitled Infinite and Profane Thrones--saw the light of day in late 1992 and debuted some new songs ("Descent to Acheron" and the title track) that bridged the gap between their early death metal years and the mythologically-driven black metal style that they become known for.

The transition to a style that can more accurately be labeled 'black metal'--or something approximating it--was complete within a few months of the release of Infinite and Profane Thrones. Absu entered the studio in 1993 to record their debut album for label Gothic Records. The resulting album--Barathrum: V.I.T.R.I.O.L.--was a mystical blend of black metal eerieness and occultic thrash influence. The obsession with ancient pagan themes was still present, but there was a new, sharper edge to the band. The bluntness of the death metal years were gone.

"The Thrice is Greatest to Ninnigal" comes from their 1993 debut

Barathrum was an American black metal release that took the world by storm. With a riffing style that drew on death metal and a mystical background reminiscent of the 1980s proto-black metal scene, there really wasn't anything comparable coming out of the USA at the time. This resulted in the signing to a bigger label---the up-and-coming French label Osmose Productions. Osmose was the band's home for many of their best and most formative years. After Osmose re-issued Barathrum in 1994, Absu headed back into the studio to record their follow-up. What resulted was 1995's The Sun of Tiphareth.

"The Coming of War" is one of Absu's most famous songs

Sonically, Absu was moving further away from their death metal origins. Now a three-piece (Mysticia and Black Massith had left the band in late '93), Proscriptor and company maintained that mystical atmophere of the early years through the masterful use of layered synths, but their guitar sound was more firmly in the black metal camp than it had been before. Another highlight of their evolving sound was Proscriptor's brilliant, yet precise, drumming (check the beginning of "A Quest for the 77th Novel" for a great example). Lyrically and conceptually, Absu was digging deeper into ancient paganism, mining Sumerian and Mesopotamian sources for its spritual richness. This approach also carried over into the ...And Shineth Unto the Cold Cometh 7", released later that year.

"Highland Tyrant Attack" comes from 1997's The Third Storm of Cythrául

It was on their third full-length album, 1997's The Third Storm of Cythrául, that things really began to fall into place for these mythologically-minded metalheads. Not only did this album feature a much more mature thrash metal-influenced black metal sound with strong riffs and superb drumming, but this was the beginning of Absu's Celtic phase. Absu drew heavily on the mystical aspects of ancient Celtic pagan beliefs for their lyrics, and the band even highlighted their own ancestry to further emphasize the connection. There are some very famous pictures of the bands appearing in kilts and other traditional garb during this era of their existence, for example.

Decked out in Celtic garb, this is the classic line-up in a very famous promotional photo

In interviews as well, the band highlighted the depth and importance of these pagan influences. For the members of Absu--unlike so many other extreme metal bands--the pre-Christian spiritual world was one of magick and power. The charismatic Proscriptor drew attention to the ways in which these beliefs shaped their lives.

Absu continued in this Celtic-influenced vein on the 1998 EP In the Eyes of Ioldanach. This release was not just a continuation of Cythrául in terms of lyrical and conceptual content, but saw a further refining of the thrash-influenced black metal style they had now become known for. But their best was yet to come...

"From Ancient Times (Starless Skies Burn to Ash)" is one of their best songs off of Tara

Absu's next album was 2001's Tara. This album not only saw their obsession with Celtic paganism reach its peak, but the musical style that they had been developing over the past few years peaked as well. It was brilliantly crafted black metal, yet the imprint of thrash metal was still easily recognizable.

While Absu may have reached their creative and musical zenith with Tara, all was not well. Equitant and Shaftiel left over creative differences, and Proscriptor injured his hand in an accident, thus causing the band to be put on hold. Once he recovered physically, he decided to put the band on hold indefinitely.  Over the next few years, Proscriptor was the session drummer for many bands in the black metal underground, and even a primary member of Israeli black metallers Melechesh.

Absu was eventually revived after this hiatus. In relatively rapid succession, they then released 2009's Absu and 2011's Abzu. A solid continuation of their earlier sound, these albums saw their occultic obsession with paganism extend more deeply into Sumerian and Mesopotamian mythology.

Absu spent the bulk of the 2010s touring and spreading their sound far and wide. After guitarist Vis Crom left the band in 2018 (after coming out as transgender), the band didn't last much longer:  Proscriptor dissolved the band in January of 2020. One of the greatest American black metal bands came to an end after roughly three decades of existence.

Select Discography:

Immortal Sorcery (demo) (1991)

Return of the Ancients (demo) (1991)

The Temples of Offal EP (1992)

Infinite and Profane Thrones (compilation) (1992)
Barathrum: V.I.T.R.I.O.L. (full-length album) (1993)

The Sun of Tiphareth (full-length album) (1995)

...and Shineth unto the Cold Cometh... 7" (1995)

The Third Storm of Cythrául (full-length album) (1997)
In the Eyes of Ioldanach EP  (1998)
Tara (full-length album) (2001)
Mythological Occult Metal: 1991-2001 (compilation) (2005)
Absu (full-length album) (2009)
Abzu (full-length album) (2011)

Next time: CARPATHIAN FOREST