(Review borrowed from Metal Archives, written by forceofevil)

Italian black metal brings its own aesthetic leanings to the genre, and has for many years -- from the proto-BM of Bulldozer and Death SS/Paul Chain, to the kitchen-sink blends of Ephel Duath, though Spite Extreme Wing's sui generis catalog and lonely outposts like Sleeping Village, Italian black metal is...a little weird. Often, reviewers think these bands are falling short of a standard, but in fact they bring their own standard to the table. In my view, the curiosity and virtuosity of Italian metal bands continues a national tradition -- prog was huge in Italy in the 70s, and Italian prog aesthetics favored very distinct atmospheres, clear recording techniques, and an overall drive to be distinct, to not sound like everybody else. On Ab Luna Lucenti, Abhor succeed wildly at the musical level while failing hard vocally. It's pretty hard to bring much new to black metal vocals -- not impossible, but hard. There are only so many ways to do the kvlt rasp of death. All the vocals really add here are a familiar texture; I'd buy an instrumental mix of this album in a heartbeat. Because the music...is great throughout, and occasionally sublime. The acoustic interludes are well-composed and played with great feeling; the keyboards aren't just a texture -- they're important contributors to the song. This, too, feels like a "value" in Italian black metal, for lack of a better word: the band sounds like a band playing together, responding to each other. In the age of Pro Tools, a LOT of bands lose sight of this. Abhor don't. You can hear that there's a shared vision here, a pursuit of a dark atmosphere within mainly mid-tempo, leisurely compositions that develop and resolve in a very progressive style, often made of of several parts that flow together. It is a very rewarding listen, as long as you look past the mainly generic vocals. The bass tone & playing, especially, is richer than much you'll hear in black metal -- it's clear, beautifully articulated, and doesn't just follow the root chords of the guitar. It's not Roger Patterson, but I find myself listening specifically for the bass playing like I used to with Atheist records. That's pretty rare company to keep.