Norwegian metal legend Abbath will release a brand new song and music video today. The song “Dream Cull” is already online and you can watch it below. The track is taken from the band’s new opus “Dread Reaver”, which is set for release on March 25th, 2022.
Abbath have also unveiled the album cover for “Dread Reaver”, which can be found below, together with the tracklist. The cover artwork was created by Bjørn Stian Bjoarvik and the photos were made by Francisco Munoz.
Pre-orders for “Dread Reaver” are available in the Season of Mist shop here. Pre-save the album here.
Tracklist:
1. Acid Haze (04:51)
2. Scarred Core (03:29)
3. Dream Cull (04:15)
4. Myrmidon (04:33)
5. The Deep Unbound (04:05)
6. Septentrion (04:30)
7. Trapped Under Ice (03:59)
8. The Book of Breath (04:35)
9. Dread Reaver (04:43)
10. Make my day (04:16)
The ravens gaze ominously from above. The seas roar in anticipation. The mountains creak yet again. Abbath’s remarkable new album, “Dread Reaver”, is upon us all. Two years in the making, Abbath’s third full-length is the culmination of everything before it. A fusion of debut “Abbath” (2016) and follow-up “Outstrider” (2019), the aptly titled “Dread Reaver” extends its fantastical fangs outward and drives its cloven hooves onward. Indeed, there’s nothing like an Abbath record. This is the darkest metal for epic journeys and ancient battles. Comprised of eight riveting tracks and a red-hot cover of Metallica’s “Trapped Under Ice”, “Dread Reaver” shows ABBATH triumphing over all trials and tribulations, riding hard into merciless glory as the one and only “Lemmy of black metal”.
Abbath was formed by Olve Eikemo (aka Abbath) in Bergen, Norway, in 2015. After splitting with vaunted extreme metallers Immortal, the beguiling frontman and storied songwriter only had one path: Abbath. Years before, he had proven that venturing out of the Immortal constellation was not only plausible but doable with the I project, a short-lived, one-album (Between Two Worlds) band featuring notable musicians from Immortal, Enslaved and Gorgoroth. Indeed, once Eikemo was free of Immortal’s shackles, he was able to assemble a cadre of like-minded conspirators for his solo debut album, Abbath. So crucial was Abbath that the Norwegian Embassy in the UK ran a music/culture piece, while in Norway, the album was nominated for a Spellemannprisen (Norwegian Grammy). Metal Hammer Germany even gonged “Abbath” with its Best Debut award. Follow-up album, “Outstrider”, was equally lauded. Billboard’s coverage sent shockwaves through the rock/metal scenes, while Kerrang! labelled it “dominating and creative”, awarding it 4Ks. Decibel also heaped praise on “Outstrider”, giving it the Best New Noise trophy. The new album “Dread Reaver” will yet again lionize Abbath as leader of the frost-bitten pack.
Powered by Abbath’s creative musical imagination, “Dread Reaver” runs riotously out of the gate. The album’s edifice affords tracks like “Acid Haze”, “Scarred Core”, “The Deep Unbound” and the album’s closing title track ample room to champion the extremes of black metal, heavy metal, and hard rock. While there are nods to NWOBHM greats, thrash metal’s luminaries, and black metal icons, “Dread Reaver” is unmistakably Abbath. There is no other fingerprint. Paired with thought-provoking lyrics based on the historical figure of Othryades, Abbath’s third album not only shouts exultant but reads like an ancient pyrrhic tale steeped in violence, sorrow, and grit. The idea of a “Dread Reaver”—a fearless duelist—can also be read as a metaphor for life’s actions and subsequent struggles. Be warned: “Dread Reaver” is Abbath at his most menacing and accomplished.
“Dread Reaver” was produced by Endre Kirkesola, Abbath, and Dag Erik Nygaard at Dub Studio in Kristiansand and Bergen Lydstudio, respectively. Kirkesola and Nygaard also engineered. Mixing was performed by Abbath and Kirkesola, while the mastering was done by maestro Maor Appelbaum (Faith No More, Rob Halford) at Maor Appelbaum Mastering in Los Angeles. The goal was to field a storming production that sat firmly at the crossroads of Abbath’s heroes KISS, Motorhead, Manowar and Bathory. From the anthemic thrust of opener “Acid Haze” and the epic pound of “Dream Cull” to the rampaging “The Book of Breath” and the wicked cover of Metallica’s “Trapped Under Ice”, “Dread Reaver” sounds as massive as Norwegian mountain and as fiery as the depths of Hell. Truly, the recording line-up of Abbath (guitar, bass, vocals), Ukri Suvilehto (drums), Ole André Farstad (guitars), and Mia Wallace (bass) found their sonic muse.
If “Ace of Spades” catapulted Motorhead to fame and notoriety, then “Dread Reaver” will find Abbath atop the metal’s gigantic heap, the spoils of icy blood, scorching sweat, and steely tears at his feet. As “Myrmidon” states, “Die with a smile, stare glassy-eyed up / At boiling skies! / Valkyries descend to gore-caked fen / Fallen warriors arise!” Lightning strikes thrice with Abbath’s incredible “Dread Reaver”!
Recording line-up:
Abbath – Guitar, bass & vocals
Ukri Suvilehto – Drums
Ole André Farstad – Lead & acoustic guitars
Mia Wallace – Bass on Acid Haze, Scarred Core, The Deep Unbound & Dread Reaver
Recording studio: Recorded in Dub Studio / Additional recordings: Bergen Lydstudio
Producer / sound engineer: Endre Kirkesola / Dag Erik Nygaard
Mixing studio and engineer: Abbath and Endre Kirkesola
Mastering studio / engineer: Maor Appelbaum at Maor Appelbaum Mastering – California – U.S.A
Weblinks:
www.abbath.net
www.facebook.com/abbathband
