Discovering a mythically rare book in a thrift shop and then crafting an album around it, while also borrowing sections of the book’s prose for lyrical content might sound like the actions of indie twerps – one look at the impressively sculpted beards of Swiss quartet Abraham, though, and you’ll quickly realise that it’s not the case.
But we’re not here to discuss books – although the Jan Gaston Rawls text The Chronoception, on which The Serpent, The Prophet & The Whore is based, certainly warrants further investigation – we’re here to discuss riffs, of which there are admittedly few on The Serpent.
Instead, Abraham rely more on the construction of oppressive, bludgeoning atmosphere, crafted from haemorrhaging, guitars and the sort of apocalyptic rhythm section Neurosis would be proud of. Elsewhere the likes of The Great Dismemberment brings to mind Converge’s former glories whilst Nek King, Dark Prophet recalls the best parts of Breach.