I seem to recall Saarbrücken, Germany's ABC Diabolo ("A Band Called Diabolo") having been somewhat hyped in certain circles back in the day, but in my typically stubborn fashion I disliked their band name and foolishly waited a few years to finally check 'em out. At least I came around, right?
Of their two LPs and a 7" from '92 to '95, the group's final outing, Give Rise to Doubts, remains by far my favorite. While not terribly different than their earlier work per se, it's just heavier and darker enough to really strike a chord, and its stronger production values add more emphasis to the gloomy melodies, too. There's arguably some semblance of "screamo" intensity blended into their frantic brand of hardcore, though I'd hesitate to classify them as such.
Other German bands from that era such as Acme, Carol, Systral, etc. seem to be more widely remembered these days, whereas ABC Diabolo is a little more off the map for some reason. It seems to me, though, that their material holds up just fine, and is certainly worthy of standing alongside such underground classics.
Comments
I have been obsessed with this band since I found a CD of Give Rise to Doubts in a local shop in the late 90s, great too underrated band, real forerunner for the Bremen sound, they had that screamed vocals, metallic riffs, dark discordance thing that the Bremen bands will go on and perfect. If you haven’t, you should check Zorn/Men of Hell, they have a bit more of an epic, Neurosis/Amebix goth/death punk feel to them, especially on Zorn’s LP, and changed name to Men of hell and released a all killer, more metallic LP “Welcome to Violence”. Well worth checking out.
8.17.2015 | By Jérémie Aramcheck
Nice! Someone introduced me to Zorn at one point a few years back, and I have some of that material, but I’ll need to check out The Men of Hell. Thanks for the recommendation!
8.17.2015 | By Andrew Aversionline