Sobre todo Nombre - AbbaFather

Artist: Sobre todo Nombre
Album: Abba Father
Release Date: June 29, 2012
Label: Come&Live

Hailing from Bogota, Colombia Sobre todo Nombre have burst onto the Christian metal scene with their debut album Abba Father, which the band says they named "because we wanted to show each and every person that listens to it, that we are sons and daughters of a Father that loves us without limits..." The bands name itself comes from Philippians 2:9-11 "therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name (Sobre todo Nombre), that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow..." The guys in Sobre todo Nombre do not shy away from what this band is about, or what their message is and it shows in each and every song.



The album starts out with a nifty little intro piece, the music of the intro is interesting but at the same time is kind of misleading, I think I'm about to hear something from Coldplay or something soft like that but as soon as the intro is done "I Give it All" kicks right in with the line "I give my all to you" and a nice riff, and then the song just goes so heavy that if you didn't know better you would never guess this is a debut album. The flawless flow of the music does not stop. Each album flows seamlessly into one another without ever sounding like one big song, or getting repetitive/boring. The guitar work is so technical and shreds so hard, for example the opening of "The Voice of the Righteous" is just sick, there is no other word to use. The band doesn't use a lot of breakdowns or blast beats in their music, which is rare and refreshing for metal right now, but when they do use them, like at the halfway mark of "The Voice of the Righteous" they use them correctly, and pull them off perfectly. The only "slow" moment of the album is the hauntingly beautiful title track. The guitar work is so flawless and it is easy to just lose yourself in silent worship every time this song comes on. Even after listening to the album literally a dozen times I still get goosebumps during this song. There is a song after about a 30-second silence after the title track called "Children of Light" it's a little different than the rest of the album, and sounds like it may have been one of the earlier songs written, but it is still very good and has some great clean vocals/gang vocals and perhaps the best drumming on the entire album.

The vocals are tight, crisp, and pure. The vocalist does mostly lower growling vocals, which fits the style of music they're doing better. Vocally, Abba Father has everything you could ask for. There are immaculate screaming vocals, very nice clean vocals ("The Voice of the Righteous") and even some unique and masterfully placed gang vocals ("Soneto la Gratitud"). Where this album really stands out though is the incredibly passionate, heartfelt, powerful, and downright Christ-filled lyrics. I can't put the entire lyrics sheet up here so I'll give some of my favorite excerpts. One of the first parts that really struck my heart came from the song "I Give it All" in which it says "You captivated me/Wrapped me in the flames of your adoption/You called me/You rose me from my own grave/A Heavenly place you gave me." to me this speaks of how exhilarating it is to have God's presence and love wash over you for the first time as you're being saved. Another great lyric is in the song "Soneto la Gratitud (sonnet of Gratitude) which translates to "I do not want to live in the midst of this desert of darkness/Show me your ways/Teach me to follows/Hold me in your eternal love."these are truly powerful words. We all need to learn how to love as God loves us, and to follow Him as we should. To see this principle responsibility of all Christians put into such elegant words is remarkable to me.

Overall: This album is a statement! In more ways than one, I might add Abba Father is a statement of Christ's love for us, and how we should love Him back and it is a statement that this band is here to hang with the big boys in the metal scene. The production, instrumentation, vocals, and lyrics of this album are impeccable. The only flaw I can find is the intro track, and that's just because I do not care for them in general. Sobre todo Nombre already has a sound that rivals that of bands like August Burns Red or Life in Your Way, and this is just a debut. I cannot fathom nor wait for what the guys will do the next time around. Also, with the release of Abba Father and last year's Kingdoms by Life in Your Way, Come&Live is secretly sneaking up there as one of the best and more importantly strongest metal labels in the industry right now. The best thing about Abba Father? You can legally download the entire album for free (or you can give any amount donation you choose) from Come&Live at their website, which I highly recommend. It's very hard to find anything bad to say about this album. It's simply a work of art and still shocks me that it's the first release from a band that is sure to become a marquee member of the Christian metal scene.


Rating: 9/10


Reviewed by: Michael Small

Tracklisting:
1. Intro
2. I Give it All
3. Strengthless
4. The Voice of the Righteous
5. Soneto la Gratitud (Sonnet of Gratitude)
6. Abba Father
7. Children of Light

(download here)