It should be no surprise by now that Behemoth are getting weirder with each release, getting further away from their roots and more and more experimental. That's been going on for a while, kind of a baby steps kind of thing, and it's been obvious, reading interviews with Nergal, that this band's sound was going to keep changing in whatever direction he sees fit. Listening to this, I couldn't help but think of the likes of Celtic Frost and Enslaved, who changed their sound drastically, though I'd say what Behemoth is doing is more gradual, much like Enslaved, than what Celtic Frost did way back when. So, unless you fell asleep at the wheel, this new album's sound shouldn't come too much as a surprise.

It took me a few listens to start appreciating this album. It's grandiose and pompous, often to the detriment of the metal elements, so to speak. There's lots of clean singing on it but it actually fits the compositions very well, though the harsher style still comes off sounding better overall. This just sounds "big" and makes the album feels longer than it is (just over 43 minutes). There's a hell of a lot going on here, though most of the time you'll be hard-pressed to find something to headbang to (better look in their old catalogue; plenty of that there). This has this ominous symphonic/orchestral vibe without being it. It's over the top and won't please those into their black and death metal era who are looking for more of it. It's safe to say that that ship has sailed. I much prefer their older stuff, but when I'm in the right mood, I've found the dark, sometimes crushing of the album coupled with the variety of the compositions to be quite entrancing. I think it's safe to say that this album is an acquired taste.