Absu: The Sun of Tiphareth (1995)

With Absu's second album, released two years after their debut, they seemingly settled on a sound, even if it is still a strange combination of disparate styles.  At least on this album it is a little more coherent and consistent in its execution.  That being said there are still some strange elements thrown in at times.

For the most part, this is a Scandinavian-sounding black metal release.  The fact that it comes from a band in the northern part of Texas, as different from Sweden and Norway as is possible, is a complete surprise.  Even moreso given the time period it was released.  This was still a time when black metal was decidedly underground.

Several of the songs here are rather lengthy, going through a number of movements and not content to stay the same.  It is an ambitious attempt to make something truly groundbreaking, or at least something that stands out among the black metal scene.  And with random elements such as clean, female vocals and, oddly enough, Celtic melodies and rhythms, it does certainly make an impression.

Added to the musical elements, there is also the somewhat bizarre lyrical subject matter.  Sumerian mythology, Celtic mythology and even esoteric Satanic philosophy intermingle in sort of a bizarre conceptual soup.  It doesn't quite work.  Nevertheless, Absu deserve props for trying something new.

Absu has yet to fully hit their stride, but they are headed in that direction on this release.  This shows a young band not afraid to try something new, even if it doesn't quite go as the band planned.  This is still an interesting and entertaining release.