Band:	Dimmu Borgir
Album:	Abrahadabra
Style:	Symphonic black metal
Release date:	September 24, 2010
Guest review by:	TheH2K

01. Xibir
02. Born Treacherous
03. Gateways
04. Chess With The Abyss
05. Dimmu Borgir
06. Ritualist
07. The Demiurge Molecule
08. A Jewel Traced Through Coal
09. Renewal
10. Endings And Continuations
11. Gateways [Orchestral version] [Limited Edition/iTunes bonus]
12. The Demiurge Molecule [Orchestral version] [iTunes bonus]
13. Dimmu Borgir [Orchestral version] [bonus]
14. Perfect Strangers [Deep Purple cover] [Hot Topic bonus]
15. D.M.D.R. [GGFH cover] [Hot Topic bonus]
+ Gateways [video] [Digipak/Hot Topic bonus]

Mustis has departed, and no ICS Vortex clean vocals for the first time since 1999. Can Dimmu Borgir escape from the massive attack of the fans this time?

Traditionally, the album starts with an instrumental piece; however, except for some seconds, it is not appealing at all and far away from masterpieces like "Fear And Wonder", "Perfection Or Vanity" or even "Det Nye Riket".

"Born Treacherous"'s intro is the first ear-catching thing in this album and goes well with the symphonic elements, which are really convenient. Then "Gateways" starts with a jaw-dropping intro and goes on well, but when the verse comes you have to reconsider about how great this track is (not as good as the intro for sure), and when guest vocal time arrives, it is nothing but an awful and pungent cocktail of juxtaposed sounds. However, it then progresses to the second guest vocal part, which is really epic and suits the song unlike the first try. The music throughout the song is nevertheless magnificent.

"Chess With The Abyss" is the first song that I heard from the album. At that time, I was a bit surprised at the amounts of changes that had happened - unaware of Mustis' and ICS Vortex's departures. I thought this record can be really thrilling, unaware of the rest of the album, which is not as exciting. "Chess With The Abyss" is heavy and really something a Dimmu Borgir fan would anticipate.

"Dimmu Borgir" maybe is the best track of this album. The symphony that has been written for this album goes beyond the genre and is comparable even with classical masterpieces. Yet another time (similar to In Sorte Diaboli), after the 5th track you can turn your music player off and will lose nothing but a bunch of symphonic ideas. Other than that, the rest of the package is absolutely useless.

Daray's drum lines are really well-organised and reminds the listener of Barker's era rather than previous record. Snowy Shaw's clean vocals aren't more than a cacophony and really disappointing, especially when we compare it with ICS Vortex's works. The production can be a superb example for those who are into combining metal with symphonic elements. All the instruments are well-mixed and the symphony is glorious. Shagrath and Silenoz had no choice but to use quite a lot of real orchestral themes in order to fill Mustis's gap and some choirs to substitute for ICS Vortex's clean vocals.

Is this record still black metal? Well, if you omit the harsh vocals, you can still hear some drum blasts or tremolo guitars, which are the essence of the genre, so I would say this might be a new step in the black metal world that kept its roots and stepped into the world of new experiences.