Right, so I've fairly recently got into this band, so I'd just like to share some thoughts, and maybe see what the general consensus is on their discography.

My first exposure to Absu was actually at 15 or so, when I heard The Third Storm of Cythraul and I really can't remember what I made of it other than "Whoa, those are some drums!" So let's start there: Proscriptor's one helluva drummer, right? I guess a lot of people will be impressed by his speed and bombast - which are certainly impressive traits - but I like his somewhat unusual filling most. He tends to roll on the snare a lot more than a conventional metal drummer might, and you can tell he's got a very solid rock background (in interviews he's confirmed this, by stating something to the effect that his main drumming influences are outside of the metal sphere [not a metal sphere like Phantasm... whatever]).

Now, the "general consensus" seems to be that Tara's their finest work, and I find myself disagreeing with this. It's a bit too "drummy" in places and sometimes it does feel like the songs suffer from Proscriptor riffing on the drums a bit too much. It's a lot less cohesive than their other albums, I feel (which is odd since the 2009 Absu is supposedly an "odds and sods" collection). Whatever the case, at the moment Tara feels like my least favourite at the moment, but it's still a good album.

The Absu album from 2009, seems to be their least popular and there's a lot of less-than-favourable reviews on this site for it. I honestly can't see why, myself, I think it's rather unique and certainly pretty damn great. Certainly 'Amy' is a fucking phenomenal song and it's a bit less "drummy" than Tara (although, obviously the drums are a very important part of the album). A very good album, I enjoy it a lot... certainly a step up from Tara.

Now, there's a third album in my Absu-exposure and that's The Sun of Tiphareth! Now this one's a total classic and a bit of an unsung one if I say so myself. Largely mid-paced, often epic and genuinely awesome... it's quite a staggering piece when taken as a whole and the individual tracks all stand out for me. It reminds me - perhaps superficially - of Immortal's debut, but the writing is a lot more confident and well-developed (not that Diabolical Full Moon Mysticism is a poor album, by any stretch). It's like if a black metal band decided to write the soundtrack to Karl Edward Wagner's Darkness Weaves or something like that. It's already become one of my favourite black metal albums.

Well, those are my thoughts for now (slim pickings, I know). I'd be interested to hear yours!

my problem with the self titled are just 1 thing, proscriptor should shut up more. It needs more instrumental passages.
I also found the first 3 albums to be somewhat uncomfortable sounding although they are good. I personally blame my mp3's for this. I've had a similar experience although to a much smaller extend with Nesphite but i finally bought it and ripped it lossless and its a much comfortable listen now.

Their whole discography is pure gold. Barathrum V.I.T.R.I.O.L. was the first album I heard from them about 4 years ago or so and I've been a fan since then. Proscriptor is definitely on my of favorite drummers, that guy is a best behind the kit. It's great how different sounding all of their albums are, they have never done the same album twice and that's one of the reasons their discography is so great.

It's pretty hard to pick any favorites from their albums, because all of them are so unique. For example The Sun of Tiphareth has that really mystical atmosphere going which is awesome. The Third Storm of Cythraul on other hand has a lot more thrash influence and the music doesn't sound that much mystical anymore but more like a battlefield with song titles like Highland Tyrant Attack and Swords and Leather. The line-up changes are probably one of the reasons why their albums sound very different from each other. Absu is a really original band, and are truly doing their own thing.

When I first started listening to this music when I was fourteen, I was bombarded by their logo every metal site I went to explore had their logo on it. I first heard Tara in like late 08 and was assaulted by the constant speed and intensity, though it has really only been a year and a half that I've been enjoying their material. I love the darker early black and death of Barathrum Vitriol and the Bathory influenced moments of Cythraul and Tiphareth really impressed me. Add those epic instrumentals and the constant speed and relentless drumming, and you have a band that was destined to make it big.

Genius band. I also agree that Proscriptor could shut his mouth on few occasions and let the musicianship and their technicality speak for itself. Their first few albums are great in atmosphere and also showcases greatness in musicianship, relatively speaking. However, the obvious point can be made that From Tara and on, the atmosphere was lessened and the progressive and the excellence of musicianship was brought more to the surface which is only a natural evolution for a band of such caliber.

One of my favorites of all time. I agree that the diversity of their discography is what makes this band worth coming back to on a regular basis. The newest record shows a huge jump in cohesiveness from the 2009 s/t and leaves me anticipating even more great material.
After years of listening to the discography, Barathrum V.I.T.R.I.O.L. has become my favorite, absolutely crushing Death Metal! Tara is a close tie. I don't think that album is too "drummy" at all, although I understand how the drum-forward mix would leave one to focus exclusively on the percussion. Personally I think Tara is the most dynamic and aggressive record they ever put out.
As far as Proscriptor's vocals? They're esoteric for metal, so its a love or hate relationship. I think the persistent vocal presence is a huge part of the aggression in the music.

My first dealing with Absu was quite a few years ago, I'm guessing around 1998 or 1999, when I heard "Highland Tyrant Attack". First listen was quite shocking, as I was just getting into some, to me, odd black / offshoot black bands like Ophthalamia, Arcturus, Bal-Sagoth, etc. There is just so much intensity in that song that it just grabbed my attention and wouldn't let go. I enjoyed "Tara" but not to the extent of "The Third Storm" (which in my opinion, is their best). "Manannan" was pretty bad ass though. Unfortunately, I haven't given the last two albums a listen ("Abzu" and "Absu"). Maybe someday I'll around to picking them up...

My first dealing with Absu was in 1993 when I blindly bought their debut album on lp. The record shop that I always went to back then was great for obscure unheard of releases at the time, Burzum, Impalaed Nazarene etc ah I miss those days. Anyway after a few listens I got really hooked on the debut, it was dark and evil sounding though was more death metal than black metal back then and the additional keyboards/samples made it a bit more unique sounding. I must admit to not giving the lp a spin in years now that I think of it!
While enjoying most of their albums I will also agree with others that it is their second release "The Sun of..." that I find the most appealing and the jewel in their crown imo, more epic based this time round and some nice keyboards and whoever said it has a more mystical feel than the rest of their albums pretty much hit the nail on the head, I wish they would do more music in this vein. The albums that followed while still good just did not catch me the same and found myself over the years drifting away from Abus. I would also love to see them use the bagpipes a bit more often here and there as the odd small piece they do sounds great.
As we are on the subject are the last two albums worth looking into?

Absu is a damn fine band. They have managed to stay consistent and continue to develop quite well. I have no complaints really. The Sun Of Tiphareth is my favorite record.

They're above average black/thrash, with slightly more emphasis on the riffing than Tara (which was rather drum-oriented). I dig them.

Definitely a departure from the style of "Tara" which remains such an absolute UNIQUE record but worth looking into.

I've barely scratched the surface when it comes to Absu - my first exposure was also at fifteen or so, though it left absolutely no impression on me. I re-checked them later some years ago, and again, it failed to grab me. Perhaps I didn't give them enough time and attention. Not that I found it unpleasant, quite the contrary, but for example the rediscovery wasn't nearly as impressive and memorable as it was with several other bands from my teens that I later rediscovered.

Hey guys,


Sorry to derail the thread a bit, but seeing as I can't seem to find any pictures or any kind of description of the digipack release of Tara and the EP, I've got a few questions about the packaging. So, is the original artwork included in the digipack? Do the inserts differ from the original release? As far as I know, the original booklet is supposed to be full of Proscriptior's liner notes. Does this also hold for the digipack ? And, are there two CD's or are the album and the EP crammed on one disc? Also, I'd be really happy if someone has by chance a few pictures of the release lying around .

Both of the covers are in the booklet. First 38 pages of the booklet have all the information about Tara. The cover, pictures, lyrics, liner notes and the lexicon explaining the words in the lyrics. And the last 8 pages have all the information about In the Eyes of Ioldánach EP, but not the lexicon.

There is only one disc, so In the Eyes of Ioldánach begins after Tara ends.






EDIT: added two pictures:

Thank you so much! Guess this is the next thing I'm buying. Really happy that the original artwork is included, I was afraid that there was only the black cover because of the whole trend of reissung albums with completely different artwork for no apparent reason. And by the same label. It really doesn't do justice to the original painting.

Absu is phenomenal. Proscriptor is an absolute beast. Tara and Third Storm of Cythraul are my favorites. Their latest stuff is a little more straightforward, imo... Still very good, but nothing on the earlier stuff, Tara most notably.

Definitely one of the greats, for me.

Some hits and some misses with them, but mostly hits, and when they hit it, they hit it fucking hard.

Love Absu been into them since the mid90's. I love their early work and also their last two albums with a different line-up. Kind of wish they'd go back to the Celtic mythology rather than babalonian, but still awesome band, probably the best metal band state-side.

I really love the debut. It's the only album I have physically, and it kicks ass. I own The Third Storm of Cythraul on iTunes. I need to listen to it more and buy more of their work.

I suppose I'll chime in here. I've listened to this band for quite some time now and I seem to find something new and/or unique with any album I listen to. It's odd, when I listen to one of their albums, that album becomes my "favorite" of theirs. Each album represents a unique listen and is different from the other releases, which is more or less as Proscriptor intended it to be. The lyrics have plenty of meaning and sometimes it goes way over my head and it takes time to research. Regardless, it is enjoyable either way. In addition, I am pleased by the fact that Russ doesn't necessarily take himself 100% seriously.

I invite you all to see the work I've done for the website and the FB page for them (if that's your thing - http://www.facebook.com/officialabsu). As a fan, I've tried to pour a lot of heart into it and I am pleased (as well as Russ) by the results as I am always constantly updating and happy to hear from anyone else about it. From one Absu fan to another, enjoy!

Also, their first video in 14 years for "Hall of the Masters" debuts on September 10th.

I reckon you should try The Sun of Tipareth, and if you don't like it... well, you'll be worse than MacMoney.

I just played Tara now; it's certainly got its moments (first and last tracks, in particular). But for a great deal of its playing time it just blasts by. I can't really say it's a very memorable album for the most part.

I find Absu's music to be a much more engrossing experience on headphones than it is through a stereo. A lot of the intensity of what they do (especially in an album like Tara) lies in the blazing fast rhythmic details that are far more apparent at "close range." Also the guitars are mixed fairly low, and on headphones they have more of a presence. Plus you pick up more subtleties in Proscriptor's witch-like vocals, which also adds to the experience.

I'd have to say Abzu is one of their absolute best so far. It's not flawless by any means (I wish "Skrying in the Spirit Vision" were stronger, and there are a few other weak points in places), but it's got a ton of great work on it, a real solidification of their new sound, and an awesome closer in "A Song for Ea." By comparison, Absu feels like a watered down and bloated prototype, so it's exciting to see them moving in a progressively stronger direction. I do think the slightly dirtier-sounding production of times past suits their music better than the more polished recent sound, though.

I'll have to give The Sun of Tiphareth another listen. On headphones. Taking my own advice.

Tara is excellent, but I will definitely go with the self titled from 2009 as my favorite, one thing about that album is that they finally were able to open up the songwriting and allow some diversity and different patterns. I need to check their early stuff though.

I just recently started listening to this band. The only two albums I have heard are Absu and Abzu, but just from them they have quickly become one of my favorite bands right now. I heard from a big fan of them that their albums get better and better as they go, so I started with the most recent two. From reading this thread though, I'm pretty excited to listen to their back catalog. Abzu is probably my favorite so far though, I can't really say there is a bad song on the album.

Anyone know if they're working on a new album atm?

Bought new album today and it's sounding pretty good so far. I do wish the instrumental passages were a bit longer and the vocalist would shut up from time to time, but other than that no complaints really. Great stuff.

Absu are a pretty awesome band- definitely one of the more interesting bands who retain a lot of Thrash influence. I haven't heard the 2009 release, but the one from last year is pretty awesome. Like the Prog & Trad/Speed Metal influence all over it. My favorite Absu would have to be either "Sun of Tiphareth" or "Third Storm"; the more epic vibe of Sun and Storm's combination of that and the speedy Thrash that came to dominate "Tara" just work best for me.

Dunno, but they just released a single through Adultswim, of all places..