Doom/Death is not easy to do, because you have to go slow, and so you always have the risk of becoming boring, rather than depressive. Abyssic change up the formula by adding a lot of symphonic keys to their sound, which helps keep things interesting but not quite enough. The thing about going slow is that you need musical constructions that build tension over time, so that when you finally release it, it runs over you like a tidal wave. You can't use flat songwriting that just repeats, and you can't suspend meaning for too long just to draw things out until you are ready to pay them off. Plus, when you finally do pull the cord on a song, it has to actually pay off what you have been building up.

Abyssic don't succeed on all fronts. The production is stellar, with a deep, roomy sound and plenty of heaviness. The songwriting is only about 50% as compelling as it needs to be for songs this long, and it drags. The keys help add texture, but all too often this just becomes a slog. The mood is good, and the sound is big and booming, but these tunes just don't have enough going on to sustain them through their length.