apanthropy

VoidCeremony
Abditum
20 Buck Spin
To Be Released: 11/14/25

Rating: 85/100

“‘Abditum‘ is a manic burst of released energy, like chaotic intrusive thoughts. Lasting less than half an hour in length, the sheer barrage of riffs, transitions, and percussive carpet bombing feels like a distortion of time. Perhaps, in certain points, resembling something akin to StarGazer or Intellect Devourer in terms of composition and immersion and other times resembling current-era Morbid Angel in its extremely tight riff crafting and almost mechanized machine-gun rhythm work.”

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1 – Intro – Inevitably Entropy
2 – Veracious Duality
3 – Seventh Ephemeral Aura
4 – Dissolution
5 – Despair of Temporal Existence
6 – Failure of Ancient Wisdoms
7 – Silence Which Ceases All Minds
8 – Gnosis of Ambivalence
9 – Outro – Elegy of Finality
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Having formed in 2013, VoidCeremony emerged in a decade that saw acts like Blood Incantation and Chthe’ilist enter the scene as part of a larger boom of technical death metal. Records from bands such as Gorguts, Ulcerate, Maze of Sothoth, and many others fueled a wave of highly technical powerhouse demonstrations of extreme metal that dotted the decade and showcased a new level of songwriting coming out of that era.

Having released a trio of EPs during the 2010s, VoidCeremony reached a new peak in the form of their debut effort, 2020’s Entropic Reflections Continuum: Dimensional Unravel, that established the band as a heavy hitter in the modern death metal movement. Their sophomore effort, Threads of Unknowing, arrived in 2023, recorded with a powerhouse lineup of some of the stronger names in the modern death metal period, further cemented the stylistic approach and surgical execution the band pulled off so well. November 14th marks the arrival of VoidCeremony’s third and newest effort, Abditum, out through 20 Buck Spin, who have previously handled the band’s first two efforts.

Abditum is a manic burst of released energy, like chaotic intrusive thoughts. Lasting less than half an hour in length, the sheer barrage of riffs, transitions, and percussive carpet bombing feels like a distortion of time. Perhaps, in certain points, resembling something akin to StarGazer or Intellect Devourer in terms of composition and immersion and other times resembling current-era Morbid Angel in its extremely tight riff crafting and almost mechanized machine-gun rhythm work. This is the end product of seasoned veteran musicians coming together to summon chaos and wield it in a largely malicious manner.

A great deal of progressive and technical death metal serves almost like an arms race in terms of pure physical and mental skill. Each band competing with one another to see who is the fastest, most technically demanding, or most compositionally progressive. The raw skill on display shows a level of discipline and endurance that is developed outside the realm of normal musicians. Its hyper focused, a tsunami of notes, taking music theory and making it glow white hot from pure sonic friction and abuse.

But it doesn’t always equal a good song.

VoidCeremony accomplishes the technical nuclear-tier musicianship on Abditum, but blends in seamless sonic fluidity, an everchanging barrage of riffs that form complex phrasings that resolve in logical sequences, leads and harmonizations of intricate melodies emerge and withdraw in varying states of intensity, there is structure but its alien and hostile. Each song is a visceral display of technical songwriting. Employing a degree of airiness as a general feel over the first half of the album, the second half takes an abrupt and hostile shift, exhibiting ultra-tight death metal that suffocates through raw mechanized intensity.

After a rather unassuming introductory track, the first proper song is the longest cut on Abditum, the cyclonic ‘Veracious Duality,’ breaking the six-minute mark and becoming an endurance run of dissonant chord progressions, breakdowns, and an uncountable number of transitions and riff sequences. Employing both progressive composition and excellent technical musicianship, single note sequences strike like vipers, warped through various tempo and timing manipulations, leads blaze through the dark abyss of sonic chaos burning bright and fast before fading into nothingness, and the scourge of pure percussive fury keeps the song battering forward like a battalion of tanks advancing on fleeing targets.

‘Dissolution’ kind of serves as an instrumental departing beacon from the first half of the album, moving into territory that’s, somehow, even more aggressive. Splitting the record in half is the lighting fast brainstorm ‘Despair of Temporal Existence,’ that opens with absolutely massive sounding guitars and ripping double bass, ultra tight and razor sharp, tearing from phrase to phrase like blades through meat, invoking monstrosities on par with the likes of modern Morbid Angel or Immolation.

‘Failure of Ancient Wisdoms’ does offer some degree of respite through some slower phrases and riff sections and ultimately resolves on excellent soloing and ethereal clean guitar work. ‘Silence Which Ceases All Minds’ is a blistering onslaught of scorched fretboards, with more ripping lead work, an entire battery of perfectly and meticulously crafted riffs, and ultra technical drumming, an extended instrumental track late in the record, feeding directly into the feral horror of ‘Gnosis of Ambivalence,’ one final display of intense rhythmic firepower and a churning mania of technical guitar brilliance.

Essentially, you’re getting five songs with vocals, two instrumentals, and an intro and outro track, crushed into less than thirty minutes, so it never overstays its welcome, it’s a great repeat listening experience and there’s enough variation and enough negative space that, even while wildly technical, it doesn’t descend into territory where its simply sonically overwhelming for the sake of being sonically overwhelming with no real rhyme or recourses.

VoidCeremony deliver a bewildering, chaotic, and technically challenging performance on their third full-length. Fans of technical death metal from the 2000s forward, absolutely, this is a no-brainer, you’re missing out if you’re not taking this one out for at least a single spin. Abditum is a gratifying listen that ticks a lot of musical boxes with its explosive delivery and showmanship. It shows a band that is evolving as it ages, operating with distinct musical palette regardless of line-up changes. 2025 has been a colossal year for death metal releases and VoidCeremony have contributed yet another excellent record for their personal discography and another phenomenal contribution for a burgeoning list of great records from this year. Technical death metal fans, modern death metal fans, and those seeking something beyond conventional instrumental application, this is a must listen.

Label: 20 Buck Spin
Band: VoidCeremony

AJK