Abysmal

For the Haunted song, see Revolver (The Haunted album).

Abysmal is the seventh studio album by American melodic death metal band the Black Dahlia Murder. It was released on September 18, 2015 through Metal Blade Records.^[7] It was produced by Mark Lewis, who also produced The Black Dahlia Murder's albums Deflorate and Ritual, and the band's former bassist Ryan Williams, who also produced their preceding album Everblack.^[8] It was the band's last album to feature guitarist Ryan Knight before his departure in February 2016, until his return in 2022 and performance on Servitude in 2024.^[9]

Abysmal
Studio album by the Black Dahlia Murder
Released	September 18, 2015
Studio	Rustbelt Studios in Royal Oak, Michigan (drums) Regal Fecal Studios in Warren, Michigan (guitars and bass) Castle Strnad in Auburn Hills, Michigan (lead guitar and vocals) Studio 53 in London, England (violin and cello)
Genre	Melodic death metal
Length	37:07
Label	Metal Blade
Producer	The Black Dahlia Murder
The Black Dahlia Murder chronology
Everblack (2013) Abysmal (2015) Nightbringers (2017)
Singles from Abysmal
"Vlad, Son of the Dragon" Released: June 24, 2015[1] "Receipt" Released: July 22, 2015[2] "Threat Level No. 3" Released: August 19, 2015[3]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
About.com	[4]
AllMusic	[5]
Sputnikmusic	[6]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Trevor Strnad, except "Der Ton" written by Brian Eschbach; all music is composed by the Black Dahlia Murder.

Standard Edition

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Receipt"	4:02
2.	"Vlad, Son of the Dragon"	2:56
3.	"Abysmal"	3:41
4.	"Re-Faced"	3:50
5.	"Threat Level No. 3"	3:46
6.	"The Fog"	3:50
7.	"Stygiophobic"	3:14
8.	"Asylum"	3:38
9.	"The Advent"	3:41
10.	"That Cannot Die Which Eternally Is Dead"	4:29
Total length:		37:07

Deluxe Edition Bonus Tracks

No.	Title	Length
11.	"We Dead Are Best Left Underground"	3:00
12.	"Hellion"	1:05
13.	"Der Ton"	1:20
Total length:		42:32

Personnel

The Black Dahlia Murder

• Trevor Strnad – lead vocals
• Brian Eschbach – guitar
• Ryan Knight – guitar
• Max Lavelle – bass
• Alan Cassidy – drums

Additional personnel

• Mitch McGugan - violin
• Rhianon Lock and Rachel Dawson - cello
• Bertie Anderson - classical vocals on "Vlad, Son of the Dragon"
• Ryan McCullough - MIDI voicings

Production

• The Black Dahlia Murder – production
• Mark Lewis – recording, engineering, mixing, mastering
• Ryan "Bart" Williams – recording, engineering
• Daemorph – artwork

Charts

Chart (2015)	Peak position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[10]	126
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[11]	113
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[12]	66
US Billboard 200[13]	45
US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[14]	8
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[15]	15