An eerie forest, a boiling pot of decaying smell and a conclave of witches among other dark creatures chanting their satanic rite. First goes the witch in black and from her withered hand sips a bit of sludge. Then comes a wolf and spits blood and Stoner Rock. An elf is sacrificed for a sludge taste in the mix. Before them stands a wicked witch chanting experimental spells. The pot explodes and "Abysmal Despair" comes forth amongst acrid smoke and chants of horror.

The trio from southern Sweden delivers an evil combination of aggressive cutting Stoner Rock with great enthusiasm and energy. Taking influences from bands like ELECTRIC WIZARD, EYEHATEGOD and ACRIMONY the band creates a raw and powerful record. The songs are characterized by slow tempo and heavy as hell riffs. The production is as raw as it can get and while this might be annoying to some I definitely like it as it adds to the style and atmosphere of the record. However the second half of the record is not as enjoyable as the first part. In fact, the songs that I enjoyed most ("Pyramids", "Wicked Witch" and "Keloma") all came from the first section of the album. The performance of the band is top notch but the screaming vocal style doesn't fit to the overall effort or at least I can't get used to it. Soundwise it is reminiscent of the NWOSDM style of vocals but to me it doesn't seem that fitting. However I have to add that after a week I got more and more used to them.

"Abysmal Despair" is a great record by a band that puts a lot of effort in doing things their own way. Despite the great effort into giving a unique and great effort the name ODYSSEY is a very common one and would not help distinguish from a dozen of bands bearing the same name. You can check this record on the band's site, through SoundCloud or on Spotify plus you can enjoy the two official YouTube videos attached below.