Originally formed in 2010, Miami’s Abiotic was a prominent part of Metal Blade’sroster between 2012 and 2015 thanks to their take on technical death metal and deathcore. After two successful albums the band would go on hiatus for a few years, emerging in 2019 with a new single “Emerald”. Now split between three states, Abiotic has returned with their third full length Ikigai which doubles down on the technical elements of their previous albums while still bringing an appropriate amount of brutality. It’s a release that’s steeped in a darker and enticing atmosphere along with the usual technical wizardry and slower breaks one would expect, but it successfully pushes the band to new heights and may even convince some listeners who weren’t sold on their earlier efforts.
Let’s be clear, if you have an aversion to breakdowns and anything metalcore or deathcore leaning Ikigai isn’t likely to fully change your mind (but you’d probably also not be a reader of this site). But for those that lean a bit more towards the technical and progressive side of death metal over the core side, Abiotic is likely to win you over this time around even if they didn’t fully in the past. In the almost six year gap between Casuistry and this album the band has grown significantly and now are able to balance softer progressive leaning sections where they let a darker atmosphere and jazzier elements hover over the recording with the brutal passages you’d expect. This is evident from the title track which has ever-shifting guitar and bass work alongside rhythmically diverse drumming and some eastern instrumentation that tie into the samurai theme. While that song does eventually build up into the type of frantic and fast paced attack that is reminiscent of Abiotic’s previous work, there’s now a deliberate pace to get to that point and the free flowing nature of the writing brings to mind newer Gorguts and other bands that were able to balance some of that prog edge with technicality. The slower breakdowns and chugging sections haven’t been abandoned entirely, but they’re placed at deliberate points rather than being the focus and as a whole Ikigai seems more focused on the flow of the material and weaving in and out of atmospheric melodies and brutal, precise attacks. Admittedly even with this newfound approach making a very strong first impression I did find that some of the tracks did start to blend together a bit due to some similar leads, but there’s still plenty here to draw in fans of every side of the death metal spectrum. Plus, with guest solos from Scott Carstairs (Fallujah), Brandon Ellis (The Black Dahlia Murder), and Jared Smith (Archspire) there are some genuinely standout moments.
Travis Bartosek has once again handled vocals throughout Ikigai, so if you’ve listened to Casuistry then you’ll likely be familiar with his versatile performance that moves between guttural growls and higher screams that seem to only get more intense the further through each song you get. Although Abiotic’s approach here is familiar within this type of death metal, Bartosek has been an asset for them as he’s able to consistently tower above the rest of the band with how powerful his voice is. In addition to the previously mentioned guest soloists there are also some guest vocalists featured on Ikigai, with Trevor Strnad (The Black Dahlia Murder), Chaney Crabb (Entheos), and Jonathan Carpenter (ex-The Contortionist) all making an appearance. While the group could have easily stood out without these additions, it only makes the vocal work even more versatile and feels like a proper celebration of how strong of a return this is.
It’s clear that with the couple year hiatus Abiotic has made a point to return with an even more ambitious and heavy hitting record, and they’ve succeeded. While some elements of their previous material remain, they’ve moved much closer to sweeping progressive and technical death metal where the songs flow naturally in a storytelling like fashion and have equal amounts of flashier technicality and softer atmospherics. Although there are still some moments where this new ambition leads to some songs that follow similar patterns, the material impresses and I am all for the new direction this band has gone in. There’s going to be a lot of competition for these types of death metal in 2021 but Abiotic remains a contender. Ikigai is available from The Artisan Era.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg
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