Hamilton, Ontario-based punishing death/doom outfit Absorb will release their Smog EP on July 26 via Hypaethral Records.
Forged in 2013, Absorb — Jeff Luckel (lead guitar), David Eckmeier (rhythm guitar), Jason Luckel (bass), and Aaron Barthe (drums) — set out to cultivate a sound that was slow, dissonant, and quakingly heavy. After cycling through a number of vocalists, the final piece of the puzzle fell into place with the addition of vocalist Erik Thorkildsen in 2022. Since then, Absorb has found its true sound, a perfect fit with Thorkildsen’s dominating vocal delivery.
Following the band’s 2023’s Rot EP, Smog marks a profound evolution for the band, embracing denser, more atmospheric compositions that add new layers of depth to their monolithically heavy sound. Absorb's music is a full-body visceral encounter, drawing from influences such as Primitive Man, Thou, and Cough, yet forging a sound that leaves listeners stunned. A three-track, twenty-five-minute aural assault, Smog is the next chapter in the band's inexorable voyage to push their music beyond the limitations of death and doom.
“This is our second release with Absorb's current lineup,” elaborates Thorkildsen. “Smog envelops the listener in a dense, thunderous, buzzsaw fuzz-laced journey that rings in your head like tinnitus long after the last note. Combining soul-crushing riffs and intense, varied vocal delivery, it delivers a cathartic punch, leaving you feeling raw and contemplative with its weight.
"'Dissociated' is the first song that I've written with Absorb from top to bottom," he continues of the opening track and first single from the EP. "The Rot EP had already been completed by the time I joined the band. Lyrically, 'Dissociated' is a mix of being at the end of a two-year COVID bender and fantasizing about losing everyone in my life when the cell network(s) went down for twenty-four+ hours. It feels like isolation that just buries you further and further."
Smog was produced, engineered, and mixed by Nick Ginn and mastered by Jamie King. Guitars were engineered and recorded by Andy Dmytryshyn. The EP will be released on limited CD (100 x four-panel digipak), limited 12” vinyl (100 Smog, 100 Black) and digital formats.
Preorder at hypaethralrecords.com.
Tracklisting:
“Dissociated”
“Smog”
“Cecilia”
“Dissociated”:
(Photo – Brittany Vaughan)
