by Frank Lincoln Sample
“…each piece offers an abundance of sounds and textures woven into intense and complicated arrangements…” – Decibel Magazine
Decibel Magazine is hosting an exclusive stream of Haze, Cacophony, And White Light, the intense third LP by Portland, Maine-based black/death metal collective SHABTI – uniting members of Obsidian Tongue, Falls Of Rauros, Fires In The Distance, Panopticon, and more. The stream arrives just days ahead of the album’s release this Friday through Contemn Light.
Musically, SHABTI has never been more calculatingly lethal than now, with Haze, Cacophony, And White Light deploying an incinerating salvo of black-edged ripping death wrought in layers of inflamed technical prowess and progressive flourishes. The album’s conceptual lyrics are hazy reflections of past-lived experiences intersecting with a kaleidoscope of mythological and dream-like imagery, exploring themes of grief, longing, religion, and alienation, which culminates in a dire augury of the future where The Shabti succeed their masters.
Tracked by the band with additional tracking of vocals and guitars at Acadia Recording Company in Portland, Haze, Cacophony, And White Light was mixed at The Cathedral of Psychic Death by Aaron Charles (Falls Of Rauros), mastered by Dan Lowndes at Resonance Sound Studio, and completed with cover art by Ibay Arifin.
Vocalist/guitarist Rob Cook writes, “We are thrilled to finally share our third full-length album Haze, Cacophony, And White Light. This album is the culmination of ten years together with this lineup and persistence in the face of various setbacks and delays. The songs and music came easily but the logistics and life distractions did not. Fans of our last album, Trembling And Shorn, will find that we continue in a similar direction with more precision and ambition, but still retaining the raw, organic feel of SHABTI.”
He continues, “Though most of the songs have more than one meaning, some of them are more directly drawn from my personal experience and personal experiences of the people around me than songs I have written in the past. After toiling in the underground for years and years, it was very important to me to get this album right, and I am proud of what we have accomplished. After our album release this August, I am eagerly looking forward to delving into writing the follow-up to this album. The music scene/industry is discouraging at times, but I always find that something pulls me back and that I still have more to say as a writer.”
Decibel writes, “they evidently put in some serious time crafting the six black metal-influenced tracks on their latest, as each piece offers an abundance of sounds and textures woven into intense and complicated arrangements, all topped with Cook’s growls and shrieks. Cacophony, indeed.”
Hear SHABTI’s savagely executed Haze, Cacophony, And White Light in its entirety early via Decibel Magazine at THIS LOCATION.
Haze, Cacophony, And White Light will be released digitally and on tape by Contemn Light this Friday, August 21st. Find preorders at Bandcamp HERE and digital presaves HERE.
Following the band’s hometown record release for the album last week, SHABTI is currently plotting more widespread live excursions for the months ahead.
Emerging from the thaw of the Maine Winter in 2008, SHABTI has been steadfastly crafting their brand of brooding technical black/death metal, eschewing gimmicks, trends, and posturing in favor of focusing on more direct sonic pursuits. After several years and permutations, SHABTI’s lineup finally coalesced into its current form, uniting drummer Ray Capizzo (Falls Of Rauros, Obsidian Tongue, Panopticon-live), vocalist/guitarist Rob Cook (Worm Altar), and bassist Brendan Hayter (Obsidian Tongue, Fires In The Distance). The band has played live frequently throughout the Northeastern United States with bands such as Immolation, Today Is The Day, Primitive Man, Ghoul, Necrot, Blood Incantation, and Conan.
Following two demos in their first few years as a band, SHABTI self-released their debut album, Paracusia, in 2013. In 2019, their second album, Trembling And Shorn, was released in cooperation with Last Mercy Emissions and the band embarked on a Northeastern US tour in support, playing with the likes of Evoken and Churchburn.
In 2022, SHABTI began tracking their third album, yet various life events, mundane commitments, festering depression, and other musical projects delayed completion of the recording process. SHABTI emerged to play several shows at the end of 2023 and early 2024, notably providing hometown support for Ghoul and Necrot, and in late 2025 into early 2026, the band strapped in and completed their third album, Haze, Cacophony, And White Light.
