There’s certainly nothing wrong with grindcore that sounds like a violent raccoon orgy in a dumpster full of nuclear waste, but I tend to be ever-so-slightly more partial to those that can blend a sense of precision into the unhinged. Enter Abraded. These Cleveland boys know how to take the rumbling cut of modern OSDM (what a weird phrase) and ram it full of grinding insanity with just the right balance of the two on album number three.
Ethereal Emanations From Chthonic Caries was written and recorded in 2017. Should you spend roughly 15 seconds sleuthing, you will discover that Abraded is credited as having formed in 2018. Did this album form itself and then, by its power of self-generation, create humans who one day soon after became a band? No, you smooth-brained numpty, that makes no sense! See, what had happened was, mastermind Patric Pariano wrote, performed, and recorded everything on this album with the exception of the bass, and then it sat until being remastered and remixed last year. Did he not like the music enough at the time to release? Did he decide it made more sense to have the first music for Abraded put out into the world to be that done with his collaborators? Fuck if I know. (Sidenote: this is how I’m interpreting the info on the group’s Bandcamp page as well as other brief online descriptors from the band and label. My bad if I’m wrong.)
This bizarre approach to releasing music isn’t terribly shocking considering Pariano is also one half of Hemdale, which has only ever released demos, splits, and compilations. That’s right, not one single full-length album in a 20-year career. Clearly, this man is a maniac, but that’s certainly beneficial when it comes to making killer grindcore. Despite essentially being a repackaged debut, what’s on display here is extremely well-crafted and performed, showing Pariano’s experience. That said, it takes a slightly different direction from the previous two Abraded releases. The production is a touch less grimy and the gurgly goregrind vocals are entirely absent. The only touch of gore carrying over is the glimmer of trash can on the snare. There is a decidedly more blatant lean into OSDM and a focus on the vocals and drums, in particular, acting like they were born from the mouth of madness. Essentially, Ethereal Emanations From Chthonic Caries is Pariano acting like a dog that is seeing himself in the mirror for the first time, trading off moments of intimidating barks, tactical sneaking, and then running around like a lunatic when that doesn’t work.
The balance of the drumming against the wily vocals is this album’s shining feature, which is immediately apparent. Not only do the drums balance supporting a climbing, clawing, fighting stretch of music paired with foam-mouthed ranting on the opening track but late in the game the toms start rollicking so absurdly that it’s like someone trying to shoot a massive machine gun for the first time and becoming so overwhelmed by the recoil and power that they’re incapable of letting go to make it stop. “Menticide” sees one of the very few passages that utilizes open space, but throughout it, there are wild drum rolls and bits of vomitous exhalations darting in and out. Then, there’s “Compensatory Contrarianism,” which features about 20 seconds of essentially just the snare drum and vocals trading barbs like a perpetual motion machine on coke and a goblin in the electric chair, respectively. The use of cymbals throughout is deployed phenomenally well to aid in the sense of chaos, too.
While the drumming and vocals may be the most entertaining combo, the riffs are certainly on point here. There is plenty of razor-sharp, slightly more technical riffing abound for speed junkies, but Abraded also know how to balance that with death metal hooks and moments clearly written to make you bang your head. Before the previously mentioned open-space passage in “Menticide,” there is an absolute tank-tread steamroller of a Bolt Thrower riff. “Uroboric Incest” has a much simpler riff that’s easier to hook the listener, but is surrounded by flailing cymbals that give it a greater sense of urgency. “Collectivized Enmeshment” also deftly weaves a bit of bounce into one part of a riff before letting the next go into a full-on assault, and then jumps between the two regularly.
In summation, this debut third album, which is slightly different from what fans may have come to expect from Abraded, is still well worth its sub-30-minute runtime. Get sliced by some riffs, battered by some drums and have no idea what in the hell is coming out of the mouth of a man completely possessed.
