ALBUM REVIEW: Abandon All Faith – Strigoi

Greg Mackintosh spent most of the last decade splitting his time between Gothic doom legends PARADISE LOST and his death metal cathartic project VALLENFYRE. During this time, he found himself falling back in love with the underground death metal scene, and when the time came to put VALLENFYRE to rest, he wasn’t quite ready to leave the scene altogether. Enter his newest outfit, STRIGOI. Teaming up with former VALLENFYRE bassist Chris Casket, Mackintosh has just unleashed STRIGOI‘s debut album, Abandon All Faith, via Nuclear Blast Records.

You could be forgiven for going into Abandon All Faith with the preconception that the band is simply VALLENFYRE under a different name. However, STRIGOI dash these notions upon the rocks immediately. The Rising Horde is a dissonant, claustrophobic introductory track, while lead single Phantoms gives us the first taste of STRIGOI-proper; far closer in style to VALLENFYRE than PARADISE LOST, but far more expansive, bringing a host of black metal, doom, and even grindcore influences into the crusty death metal assault.

This varied pool of influence proves to be a double-edged sword. The rapidly changing stylistic inspirations keep things interesting, and definitely work to ensure Abandon All Faith is anything but repetitive. However, having so many styles clashing together across the record does give the album an unfocused feel, and its clear that there is more work to be done in refining what kind of sound STRIGOI will ultimately end up with.

The large variety on offer here does mean that there’s a little something for everyone, though. For those with a taste for the rapid-fire chaos of grindcore mixed with something a little bit different, the triplet offering following on from Phantoms – Nocturnal Vermin, Seven Crowns and Throne of Disgrace – will more than satisfy. In stark contrast, Parasite has an industrial feel to its introduction, before delving into a thrashy death metal progression. Simple but brutalising, it’s one of the stand out moments Abandon All Faith has to offer, with Plague Nation and Scorn of the Father similarly standing as points of interest for their more traditional death metal approach.

It’s clear, though, STRIGOI are at their best when they delve into the more cinematic elements of their sound. Phantoms was an early taste of this, but this theatrical turn is best felt later in the record. Six minute single Carved into the Skin is a blackened, doomy affair, making use of sinister melodies and an oppressive atmosphere. Similarly, Abandon All Faith‘s closing title track sees the black and doom elements of STRIGOI‘s sound ramped up to wonderful effect, creating a suffocating feel throughout and closing the record in spectacular fashion.

STRIGOI have crafted a very promising debut record with Abandon All Faith. When the duo are at their best, they sound absolutely monolithic. The variety of influences does give the record a disjointed and unfocused feel when taken as a whole, but each of the individual elements is executed wonderfully. Mackintosh and Casket have a bit of work to do moving forward in focusing STRIGOI‘s sound, but Abandon All Faith is a strong starting point.

Rating: 7/10

Abandon All Faith is out now via Nuclear Blast Records.

Like STRIGOI on Facebook.