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As someone who uses both character and abstract covers pretty much interchangeably, I'd say that it depends on a lot of factors. The intent of a cover is simply to catch your eye, nothing more... but if you're going to do a cover, it should be at least strongly related to the subject.
It's important to note that not every story idea translates well into abstract representation. Abstracts can be "pretty pictures" in themselves, but if they give no hint to the story itself, I'd say they aren't doing the job they should be doing. They might as well be swimsuit models, then, depicted just to drag the fanboys in, regardless of the contents.
I also don't have a problem using characters (or other story-related elements) for a cover, as long as they are intended to resemble the characters/elements depicted. As I go to a lot of trouble selecting character graphics based on the characters they represent, I'd say this method can be very effective.
Most importantly, I think it's wrong to be too concerned about the book cover as art. The literature is the art here... the cover is merely a packaging designed to encourage more people to check out the art. If the cover succeeds in that task, it's done its job.
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