As it turns out, Coltsblood is actually pretty sweet. If you can get past the pretty shitty band name and amateurish album art, you’ll find some pretty solid, sludge/doom on Into the Unfathomable Abyss, with some hints of black metal thrown in. The opening track, “Valhalla Awaits,” is really more of an intro track, or a teaser of what’s to come. Slow, thick riffs lord over the frantic, tribal drumming in a repetitive and atmospheric manner until the first real track, “Beneath Black Skies,” comes in. Like all good sludgy doom, Into the Unfathomable Abyss is built on heavy-as-fuck, monolithic riffs that crawl along relentlessly, bludgeoning everything in their path. Guitarist Jem riffs are simply monstrous, and they don’t mess around. The impenetrable riffs swamp and envelop the listener in waves of aural torment and misery, weaving a dense atmosphere of hate, desolation, and anguish.

As the final, bleak chords of “Beneath Black Skies” fade out, we are greeted by the simply, if aptly named “Blood.” This track is where the black metal elements really come into play. “Beneath Black Skies” is certainly black as fuck in feel, but on “Blood,” frenzied, tremolo guitarwork accompanies the titanic riffs from before. Drummer Steve matches the increase in speed and switches from the typical, slow patterns and begins to hammer out furious blast beats. On this song, Coltsblood creates an atmosphere of carnality and depravity that was absent from the previous tracks. It really is a shame that “Blood” is the only track to feature this combination of sludge and black metal, because it works so well for them.
“Abyss of Aching Insanity” returns us to the familiar, soul-crushing, leviathan riffs, if perhaps even bleaker than before. An exercise in minimalism, the doleful chords of “Abyss of Aching Insanity” ring out over plodding drums and rumbling basslines, accompanied by John’s tortured yells. It paints an incredibly grim and hopeless picture, with its simple, almost hypnotic riffs. The next three tracks continue the tradition of “Abyss of Aching Insanity” and “Beneath Black Skies,” with suffocating riffing and pounding drum beats, conjuring up images of complete and utter devastation. The final chords of the closer “Return to the Lake of Madness” ring out and end, snapping us out of our reverie.

Into the Unfathomable Abyss is a monster of a debut, to be sure. Jem handles her axe like a seasoned vet and her riffs are the heaviest, most crushing things I’ve heard this year. John’s basswork adds a deep, resonating feel to the towering riffs, and his vocals accentuate the desolate atmosphere of the album. Combine this with Steve’s mesmerizing drum beats and you have one hell of an album. Admittedly, I would have liked to see the inclusion of more black metal sections, but for what it is; Into the Unfathomable Abyss is pretty damn sick, and well worth your time.