An Abstract Illusion – The Sleeping City

When Swedish band An Abstract Illusion first came to my attention, I was impressed enough to purchase both their existing albums. This was in 2023 when they performed at ProgPower Europe. Two years on and they are back with a third album entitled “The Sleeping City”. Their previous album ‘Woe’ attracted some glowing reviews and a few maximum scores. So, the bar was already set high, and it was going to be a hard act to follow.

For this album the band drew inspiration from such diverse acts as Depeche Mode, My Bloody Valentine, Kite, Ólafur Arnalds and Boards of Canada. They have proudly stated, “We truly feel we’ve elevated our craft beyond anything we’ve done before and can’t wait for its release”. On that score they’re not the only ones, and I’m sure there’s a keen fanbase eager to hear this.

It’s not entirely clear what the story is behind “The Sleeping City”. Except that it explores the depths of the human psyche and suffering. Apparently, the band wanted to explore how the music for a dystopian sci-fi film would sound if written in the style of death metal. Perhaps more will be revealed regarding that when the album is released. For now, all we have to go on is the intriguing cover artwork by Alex Eckman-Lawn.

 

Needless to say, the expectations I had for this album were very high. An early video release of ‘No Dreams Beyond Empty Horizons’ proved that those high hopes were well founded. It is shorter than the album version but still runs out to seven minutes of brutal but beautiful metal. Incredibly, no matter how extreme the music gets, it retains an element of melody. Lukas Backeström makes one of several guest appearances, as part of the choir on this occasion.

Prior to that though, the hour of sumptuous complexity to come begins with the eleven-minute epic ‘Blackmurmur’. This opener provides a grandiose introduction to the album and is full of the variety that the band are renowned for. Here Mr Backeström takes on part of the lead vocals, which I’m guessing is the clean parts. This is a track that you can really immerse yourself in and let its magnificence wash over you.

The album comprises of seven tracks of Progressive/Atmospheric Death/Black Metal only one of which can be described as short. That comes later but the next couple of songs both clock in around the eight-minute mark. That’s all they have in common as the first of them, ‘Like A Geyser Ever Erupting’ is hard hitting even harsh at times. This is softened in parts by a string section made up of cello from Jonathan Miranda-Figueroa and violin from Dawn Ye.

Whereas ‘Frost Flower’ is much mellower (initially at least) with Lukas once more taking on some of the vocals.  An extra orchestral feel is achieved with the addition once again of the cello and violin (this time from Flavia Fontana).

Then it’s time for another extravaganza in the form of ‘Emmett’ which is the album’s longest track at 11:19 minutes. This multi-faceted musical adventure has everything you could wish for in a lengthy track. Growls, screams and cleans from Christian Berglönn, soaring guitar parts from Karl Westerlund, and catchy hook lines.

The aforementioned “short” track is ‘Silverfields’ which is instrumental with shades of Pink Floyd complete with some brief narration from Elsa Svensson. It’s the softest track on the album. At under 4 minutes long it doesn’t really need to go anywhere else style wise. It does, however, serve to highlight the diversity on this album.

The title track ‘The Sleeping City’ takes up the final 10 minutes and is a strong finish to this excellent release. It is one of, if not the most varied track on the album and also has some exquisite guitar work. The power and majesty round things off perfectly with added cello and violin, ending with a soft piano outro.

Admittedly this isn’t going to appeal to everyone, but if you like your music heavy and complex and don’t mind some harsh vocals, then this is for you. Three full albums released in under ten years is steady going, especially when you consider that each one is at least an hour long. Even their original three track EP ‘Atonement is Nigh’ is over 30 minutes in length. This is longer than some albums I’ve known, now that’s what I call value for money.

This is the sort of album where one play though is not enough, each subsequent listen reveals something else. You can head bang to it, brandish an air guitar or just lie down in a darkened room and listen. Unsurprisingly “The Sleeping City” cements the band’s position in my favourites list. Also, this album joins my lengthening album of the year list.

Track Listing:

1. Blackmurmur
2. No Dreams Beyond Empty Horizons
3. Like A Geyser Ever Erupting
4. Frost Flower
5. Emmett
6. Silverfields
7. The Sleeping City