Welcome to Gaia! ::

Well... I've obtained it, listened to it multiple times, and I have a judgment regarding my opinion. That opinion is this is an absolute must listen for any Enslaved fan, or metal that progresses beyond the confines of a genre... excellent. Grutle has, in my opinion, his best vocal performance since the legendary Below The Lights. The guitar tone is amazing too. Enslaved has always had a natural guitar tone to me, but on here for display of the ears is a sound that transcends that title. While the guitar work itself may not be the most astounding performance one has heard, it still holds its own by taking the original Enslaved style and building on it. They're returned to the Black Metal feel a bit and possibly the best example I can give is the opening track "Ethica Odini." Another good example though it's quite different all around is the track "Night Sight." They also crank out some rather crushing numbers like "Waruun" and "Giants."

I know a lot of people were saddened by the previous release Vertebrae, but I enjoyed that album because it was of a different sound, a different feeling, a different world. But this one is, to me, a distant culmination of everything they've ever done put together in one new album. And it's worth at least ONE listen to any self respecting metal fan.