Unbeatable for sheer verve and panache. Most other technical/prog black/death bands (e.g. Deathspell Omega) sound, to my ears, stolid and staid by comparison. The riffs strut and the leads cackle (to coin an unusual image) like a cock out of hell and all his fiery hens. The torrential faster tracks seem constantly in danger of tripping over themselves but, despite their long durations, somehow manage to progress naturally and forcefully and hold the listener in a state of disorientated attention. In the menacing slower passages, the band moves with the measured pace of a serpent coiling and uncoiling in strange configurations. In both cases, the attitude is one of confidence, strength and Promethean defiance. The lyrics are full of bizarre poetry.
Rating: ★★★★★