The Loss of Illusions

Progressive death metal with -core influences is pretty much the last thing that I'd usually find myself enjoying. However, I've been really digging this for the last two years or so. Although the progressive atmospheric segments probably provide the most interesting parts of this album, the metal is quite commendable as well. I'm not such a fan of prominent breakdowns or metalcore riffs in my death metal, but occasionally it works out well. Here it totally fits and possibly even enhances the sound. Their riffing and general demeanor is a bit weird, but this French giant uses a slightly off kilter approach to their advantage, creating a strange but strong beast. It's a good thing they prevailed, because wasting a band name as good as Aabsinthe on a shitty group would be an international tragedy.

The band takes a varied approach when it comes to riffing. While they do indeed feature lots of breakdowns, they are hardly a one trick pony. They have more typical death metal riffs, some metalcore ones (which are a bit weaker) and even some tremolo that would not be totally without a home in a black metal setting. The tone on the guitar is very mechanical, even vaguely industrial. This machine-like tone does not make the band sound sterile - it's a strong sound and provides a nice contrast to the proggy wanderings. The lead guitar often features twisted and abrasive sections, not being big on overt melody. It is not totally uncommon for them to twist and weave their way across the framework while the dense, solid riffs stay firmly rooted in place. A few solos do break the being not so big on melody rule, however.

The throaty vocals lie directly in between a typical death metal and black metal approach. The cleans are pretty much what you'd expect from a proggy release, being quite restrained. However, they are a lot better than what a lot of other bands that use the same vocal approach manage. Although prog is an integral part of this release, the first third of this album is largely devoid of it, with it being an indispensable part of the second half. The proggy atmospheric sections are truly wonderful, featuring beautiful string arrangements, haunting pianos and swelling ethereal keys. They provide the album with some of the best breaks from momentum possible. These sections show a wonderful amount of flow.

This all fits together in a neat package, with nothing feeling superfluous. The prog sections are wonderfully integrated, with the intro to "Absent" being one of the best parts on the albums and the strange watery tones on "The Great Escape" successfully bleeding into the metal. The acoustic bonus tracks, one being of a song on the album and the other not, appear to be performed live. They are decent enough, but don't really deserve to be tacked onto the end of the album. They are nice proggy things, featuring more than just an acoustic guitar. The Cello drives matters along and the piano adds a nice touch.

The mix isn't the weirdest thing in the world, it just sounds like something that wouldn't work very well. Proggy death metal mixed with deathcore (and even a bit of metalcore)? Forget about it. However, it works surprisingly well. The proggy drifting is just about the best icing on the cake one could ask for. This is highly original - not so much in its individual sections, but how it mixes all of its elements. This is an interesting one, on paper it would be something destined to almost surely suck, but they make it work.