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Black Abyss keep on going. I remember I had their Land Of Darkness album a while back, and ended up selling it. I have a hard time recalling what it sounded like, but I don't remember it being horrible. So this, their third album, I thought merited at least a listen. This came out in 2004, the album before in 2000, and this is their most recent work, so this band could hardly be accused of being too prolific.

Upon a careful listen, I think this is a pretty decent album. The guitars are really heavy, and kick out some headbanging riffs. There is a definite hard rock vibe at work on a lot of this, a kind of Vicious Rumors/Messiah's Kiss feel that is kind of at odds with the dark lyrical imagery. I had to get used to it, but it doesn't reduce the foot-to-ass nature of the riffery. The vocals are pretty good too, even if they are rather undistinguished. Clean, but with a lot of grit that also calls to mind more hard-rocking bands of yesteryear. There are some good tunes on here, like "Dark Legacy" and "Pure Evil", also some bad ones like "The Messenger" and the irritating "Time". Album closer "When Angels Wear Black" is probably the best song here, with excellent riffs and really catchy vocal lines.

If this album has a failing, it's that a lot of it is just not that memorable. Despite some strong moments, this album doesn't leave much of a taste when it is over. There just are not many catchy moments, and so despite competent playing and heavy attack, this album remains good, but not really compelling.