Review THE ABBEY ‘Word of Sin’

Abbey of Thelema is a small house in Sicily that served as a temple and spiritual center. Founded by Aleister Crowley and Leah Hirsig, the place has been empty for a long time and is doomed to decay. But it was also an origin of occultism and already at the time not entirely uncontroversial.

These days it is the Finnish musician Jesse Heikkinen, who musically deals with the era. Together with Natalie Koskinen, who some of you may know from Shape Of Despair, Heikkinen started The Abbey which will let their debut album step out of the shadows of darkness in mid-February.

‘Word of Sin’ is the title of the record which has a total of nine songs to offer. Besides the founder and Koskinen, the line-up also includes Janne Markus, Vesa Ranta and Henri Avola; all experienced companions.

Musically, ‘Word of Sin’ can be best described as a blend of doom metal and heavy occult rock. ‘A Thousand Dead Witches’ can serve as an example. Beside calm and choral moments gloomy riffs are in the center of attention. Overall, a rather oppressive mood is created, which runs like a common theme through the entire album.

The band goes more metal with ‘Desert Temple’. Compared to most of the other tracks on the longplayer, ‘Desert Temple’ has an almost lively dynamic and draws you in with a hypnotic melody. One feels reminded of the early times of heavy rock and one can describe the track as vintage rock in a good way.

The two songs at the end of the record have to be considered as a whole. It starts with ‘Old Ones: Prequel’, which is more of an interlude. Calm and trance-like this prequel leads to the main part. ‘Old Ones’ is a 12-minute milestone that the band put at the end of this debut album. With theatrical intensity and slow tempo, the closing track starts as if the tired old bones need to get going first. Even if the song gains a doomy power, it still sticks in occult melancholy and also has a hypnotic character with its repetitions.

The Abbey offer with ‘Word of Sin’ an atmospherically dense album that will please anyone who disdains the glaring sunlight.