It’s easy to fall into the murk of what the global condition has become. Misinformation has surpassed truth in so many parts of the world that we may finally have achieved fiction as a present state. Fascist leaders are rising to power, including one of the worst, yet comically inept here in my country. Do we want to die? Because this is how you fucking die.

UK black metal force Abduction also see the darkness, the sea of untruth, and they attack that reality on their thunderous new record “Existentialismus,” their fifth overall. Here, the blistering voice led by originator A|V (there’s a full band here, but I’ll be damned if I can find a reliable lineup) explodes with infernal energy and destructive force, practically matching the rising danger that we can feel around us. The record is as punishing as the band’s previous work, but there is more flexibility now, especially vocally as some clean vocals found their way into the mix. It’s a welcome enhancement, something that cuts back on the chaos and adds new dexterity that makes the music more interesting.

“A Legacy of Sores” rips this record open, the savagery already off the charts even as melody swims downstream. The howls crush as guitars tingle, holding a brief place for a breather before the volcanic activity bubbles over again. Throaty cries grip as atmospheric leads bring this to a numbing end. “Pyramidia Liberi” has riffs coating steel, as a storming pace floods liberally, the rhythmic assault driving full force ahead as blood curdles. The playing continues to bind, A|V’s voice buzzes like an agitated nest, and the pace trounces as the cry of, “Messenger of death!” rings out. “Truth Is as Sharp a Sword as Vengeance” has  A|V expanding his voice, singing cleanly though darkness, the playing charging before screams return to add more menace. The playing pushes and pulls from brutal to more nuanced, singing sharing space with demonic wails, the intensity beginning to jackhammer with intensity, a stream-of-consciousness style bloodletting taking over as exhaust slips.

“Blau ist die Farbe der Ewigkeit” tears away, its teeth sinking into flesh, the playing then growing thrashier with deep black metal waves pulling everything under the surface. The pace races, clean singing bellowing, a colorful vortex swallowing you whole, disappearing into a mound of ash. “Razors of Occam” opens and blurs your eyes, the pace going a little more delicately than what preceded it, the singing eventually paving the way for muscular growls. The playing turns pitch black and tornadic, getting heavier and more violent as the seconds tick away, speedy strikes meeting up with melodic gushing, disappearing under a sheet of ice. Closer “Vomiting at Baalbek” is the closer, and it runs a healthy 11:10, rushing in from a storm surge, viciousness and atmosphere becoming odd partners, A|V howling, “Only death is real!” The pace dizzies, dashing through richly sung lines and barbaric screams, melodic leads adding some salve to the bruising. Guitars flush as more black metal force explodes, the jangling melodies playing tricks with your sanity and signaling a punishing end.

We’re full swing into a world where nothing seems to matter other than whatever bullshit someone smears on the internet, and truth and evidence never have been more meaningless. It’s a bleak, hopeless horizon at which we’re staring, and Abduction make that a little more volatile, offering a sobering dose of truth serum on “Existentialismus.” Darkness is thickening, our society is crumbling, and music like this reminds us we all need to take a step back and decide what humanity should look like and what we’re prepared to do to make sure that becomes a reality.

For more of the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/abduction616/

To buy the album (U.S.), go here: https://spinefarm.merchnow.com/collections/candlelight-records-1

Or here (Europe): https://candlelightrecords.tmstor.es/

For more on the label, go here: https://www.candlelightrecords.co.uk/