ABBATIA, Phantasma! In The Ends of The Loom Review
It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea but the more you listen to Phantasma! In The Ends of The Loom the more melodic nuances emerge and the more you begin to understand ABBATIA’s psychoactive vision.
When I go to bed at night, I like to go on YouTube and select a nice relaxing ‘sleep-sound’ to help me doze off. There are many sand-man summoning delights to choose from, with titles like “Camping on a Rainy Night,” “Wind Howling Through a Medieval Castle,” “A Pirate Ship Creaking During a Storm,” and my personal favourite, “Spaceship Ambient Engine Noise.” I put one of those on, and before you know it, I’m sound asleep.
You might be wondering what this has to do with ABBATIA’s - Phantasma! In The Ends of The Loom. Well, if you tried to imagine the polar opposite of a good sleep-sound, then you’re probably imagining something that sounds a lot like ABBATIA’s latest release. In fact, I’d wager you’d be hard-pressed to find another album capable of inducing such a severe bout of insomnia. With Phantasma! In The Ends of The Loom, the Philly hip-hop trio have somehow produced the sonic equivalent of downing 26 cans of red-bull and injecting Benzedrine directly into your eyeballs.
I’m not saying this is a bad album, not by any means. In fact, once you’ve popped a few headache pills, Phantasma! In The Ends of The Loom is an incredible, if a little terrifying, listen. Each of its eleven tracks is a frenzied soundscape, pulsing with manic energy. It's an album that grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let go for a second.
Musically, there’s a lot to unpack here, with elements of experimental hip-hop artists, such as Rammellzee and Death Grips through to heavier noise-rock purveyors like Lightning Bolt. There’s even a smattering of Beastie Boys, if you replaced the slacker-charm with violent rage. Often the album breaks away from its hip-hop roots and ventures headlong into punk and metal territory with a deluge of pounding beats and frenetic rhythms that make the 5am bin-lorry outside your bedroom window sound like the gentle refrain of a nightingale. What’s most surprising is how ABBATIA are able to spin all of these plates simultaneously and turn it into something which sounds completely idiosyncratic.
After the manic onslaught of album opener Qwyzod, The Loom Rider, pulls things back a little, warping and weaving its way to sinister conclusion. Exhume! and following track AMs could be the product of two entirely different artists and yet somehow sit perfectly beside each other. The brilliantly titled Blemmyae Brained is a digital cacophony of noise, supplemented by murderous, full-blooded vocals that captivate and terrify in equal measure. And my personal favourite, Battledroid sounds, well, like a battle-droid.
It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea but the more you listen to Phantasma! In The Ends of The Loom the more melodic nuances emerge and the more you begin to understand ABBATIA’s psychoactive vision. It’s a chaotic blend of hip-hop, acid-house, industrial, experimental and punk that you’ll either love or hate but certainly won’t forget. Phantasma! In The Ends of The Loom is a challenging album but if you can persevere with it, the rewards are seemingly endless. When ABBATIA find their audience, they may well be unstoppable. Just remember to have some Ibuprofen and a nice sleep-sound at the ready.