At album’s end, the music adds up to be Wolverine’s weakest album in my opinion. Continuing to chart their own way and create their own sound, Wolverine still offer one of the more introspective and concerned sounds in metal today however. Though I don’t favor their direction towards an entirely softer sound often devoid of traditional metal components, their talent and uniqueness has me looking forward to each album. With each release there are some songs I’d rather throw out to Main Street, yet other nearby tracks are distinct and imbued with a strength that comes from mature songwriting rather than blast beats. Though less on this album for me personally, passion and originality always creep in somewhere and keep me recommending Wolverine despite recognizing their sometimes shaky ground. Though their albums still seem to be under most fans’ radar, they strike me as works which I might pick up 20 years from now and appreciate even more. Whether now or in the future, The Window Purpose is still the first Wolverine I’ll reach for however. Still may be the most recent album, but it’s not the best.

Sounding washed-up without remorse, the Bergen-based band’s sixth-full length can only appeal to bargain-basement shoppers. This album is a grindy, dull affair which sounds more like sophomoric hopefuls than the original veterans who brought forth …And So the Night Became and Beyond the Wandering Moon. With three years passing since their last release, Aeturnus seems more like a burnt cavity than a band with heart and mind, barely eking out 33 minutes of tired, substandard riffs and beats.

Neither talent nor originality are shown here, and comparing it to the mood, tension, and depth of some of their earlier work is hardly real. Aeturnus comes out of the gate respectively, but except for the initial riffs and a touch of the atmospherics later in the song that Aeturnus is known for, even the album’s initial track, “The Darkest of Minds”, is a wash. Still, it’s far superior to track 2, “Godhead Charlatan”, which could suck the very life out of a tree. “The 9th Revolution” is more guitar buzzing and dull riffs akin to a tractor pull.

Other tracks such as “Ageless Void” and “What I Crave” have less life than a dying quail. If it takes 3 years to come up with 33 minutes of music of this quality, Aeturnus should be rethinking its options. This is ugly.

With all the positives I have to say about the album, some parts still give me trouble, particularly at the beginning. The initial track is but an intro of spoken words which is then followed by “My Room,” a song which has many weaknesses despite good musicianship and great variation. Not too tasteful keys open the song, and there’s a shouting, almost hardcore-like vocal style in parts of the track which nearly led me to pack it in. The softer vocals are good at times, but annoying in other places. Keyboards and the guitar sound reminds too much of late Amorphis. Moving on to “His Cold Touch, Part I” did not initially fix my dilemma. It starts off sounding as a 1980s hair metal ballad. The vocals and keyboards also were tough to swallow at first. It was actually the sparsely used death vocal growls in the chorus of this track which forced me to first take notice and begin to enjoy this release. They provide an instant edge which almost makes the entire song eerily work. At the least, they balance out the softer aspects of the track to make it whole again. At the 4:49 mark, there is a great improvement in the song with a faster tempo, harder riff, and a good guitar solo. By the end of the song, something seems to have mysteriously clicked, no matter how poorly it started. Followiing a brief accoustic interlude for “His Cold Touch, Part II,” “Leaving Yesterday” merges a King’s X “soul metal” sound with a suave female vocalist and a few pop metal components. Overall, it doesn’t work too well, but there are still some moments when the song is enjoyable.

“Towards Loss” however is the track which really gets The Window Purpose moving. The keyboards instantly open with an interesting mystique, sound, and rhythm. Next the bass gallops in, followed by riffs reminiscent of Dokken’s “Mr. Scary.” Growling vocals again compliment exceptional clean vocals, and the song offers an awesome chorus with overall great arrangements. This is quickly followed by “The Storm Inside,” which begins with another tense opening at which the listener can almost be assured something good is lurking around the corner.

Awesome vocals by Stefan Zell cut through the music perfecltly, holding even some subtle Perfect Symmetry-era Fates Warning vocal styles and themes. I’m not a fan of the brief, bluesy, guitar work, but the soft guitar, growls by drummer Marcus Losbjer, and anthemic chorus are representative of all the best of metal. Not content yet, “Coma” belts out yet another fabulous track, an intricate puzzle of complimentary wizardry from the entire band which includes probably the best guitar solo of the album. Drums, guitars, vocals, bass, and keyboards all put forth their very best blood on this song. “Release” and “Post Life” return the album to its more questionable leanings with the former being a 2 minute accoustical ballad again more akin to glam metal, while the latter is Wolverine’s rendition of Queensryche’s “Silent Lucidity,” adding keyboards trying hard to land from outer space. On the reissue, Wolverine has added “Again” as a 10 minute bonus track, and it strengthens the release in every way. It begins with a soft guitar of gloomy melody, then moves into a mid-paced doom with death vocals similar to Amorphis’ Black Winter Day sound. Clean vocals are added later and an emotionally charged, well-executed guitar solo is eclipsed only by a mesmerizing, tempered jam at the closing of the song.

Despite some weaknesses and individual aspects which normally turn me off, The Window Purpose has too many good qualities and inspired songs to ignore. Sadly, The Window Purpose reveals a superior side of Wolverine which they’ve more or less left behind. It also show an endless array of other paths the band could have chosen to travel down. Despite not being particularly appreciative of Wolverine’s current sound, The Window Purpose offers not only a hope that Wolverine may at some point return to some of their earlier sounds, but also an emotional music worth holding onto and appreciating irrespective of the band’s more recent leanings. Prog metal fans particularly should not miss this reissue if it was missed originally. It’s a diverse, fulfilling achievement which grabs the listener, demonstrating both insight and skill.

This release is honestly one for the bottom of the barrel. There are a lot of bands now attempting to ride the coattails of Nightwish’s success, and Visions of Atlantis is another one which does nothing but hurt ears with their lack of talent. It’s healthier to forget about Eternal Endless Infinity, but its re-release only brings back the heartache of an old wound.

 This has apparently not been realized by many however, despite the frightening paucity of such diversity within both gothic and black metal styles. Never taking an easy road, Agathodaimon has been one of those groups forging their own rules whether it be a 16 minute track or gothic ballads followed by blast beats. Melodies have rarely been used cheaply, yet Agathodaimon has consistently delivered harmonies and melodic riffs with depth and passion for both the accessible and the ominous and lost. Never far away have been trademark black metal growls and enough varied pace and styles to keep most listeners guessing.

It is within that framework that I try to view Serpent’s Embrace. Outright I think it is rather straightforwardly the least interesting album of their career with even perhaps some questionable musical choices. Still, Agathodaimon throws enough variation throughout the course of an album that something brilliant is bound to appear when least expected. Serpent’s Embrace begins with “Cellos for the Insatiable,” probably the most mediocre track on the release. It’s not bad, but lacks novelty, mystery, or much attractiveness. The title track starts off as a major low point of the album with a basic drum beat, sappy keyboards, and a whiny bounce in the guitar, all uncharacteristic of Agathodaimon to this point. There are some brief subtleties that are attractive in the song, but you have to pick through a junkyard all too accessible and gimmicky to find them. “Rebirth” also starts off on a rocky road: slow, dull, and duller. Certainly Agathodaimon can’t be accused of accessible gimmicking here, but it is no less interesting. However, true to Agathodaimon form, while the rest of the song is putting babies to sleep, there is a significant section in the middle of the song where the pace picks up displaying good skill and great black metal vocals. “Light Reborn” again starts off shaky, with even a touch of nu metal and thrash, but it is followed later in the song with more interesting sounds. The chorus is highly melodic and accessible, but richly sung, and further along is a rare guitar solo brilliantly executed and some fierce death vocals. “Faded Years” is again up and down. It contains some dull, dry riffing and poorly used keyboards for much of the song, but at other junctures has some enjoyable lead guitar riffs. “Solitude” is yet another of Agathodaimon’s curveballs, a slow tune backed by keys and sung by female guest vocalist Ophelia. This may seem like nothing new for gothic-influenced bands, but what makes this one entirely unique is that the song is not gothy at all, but rather jazzy in atmosphere and singing style. Ophelia has a good voice, but it is even more impressive because she delivers a great singing performance. I would have liked to see Agathodaimon develop the tune a little more to make it a real highlight, but on uniqueness alone it stands out.

 Hopefully the metal world will be accepting of the tune, if not supportive. “Limbs of a Stare” picks up with more traditional black metal vocals as the highlight of a song which has rather unattractive riffs in my opinion. “The Darkness Inside” again leaves me ambivalent combining sections of dull riffs with sections of good melodies, vocals, and lead guitar. “Bitter End” is an effective song of straight ahead black metal vocals, riffing,and blast beats. The production and keyboards temper the music to give it an interesting, less harsh feeling making it one of the more likeable tracks overall. “Feelings” has a fairly weak clean vocal chorus and further clean vocals towards the end of the track are simply Agathodaimon’s worst vocal lines of any album. The nice acoustic guitar at the end can not save the track, and it is one I would have preferred not to hear.

Regardless of not being so high on this album, I credit Agathodaimon with continuing to push boundaries in some manner on Serpent’s Embrace. They have remained true to their uniqueness by subtly carving out a myriad of styles from song to song, trying new sounds and musical strategies. Even in relative failure, I applaud a group which tries new sounds rather than rehashing the same once successful formulas. Still, Serpent’s Embrace has incorporated many dull, ineffective riffs with a few too many gimmicks in stylistics and instrumentation for my liking.

Overall, the new album lacks the mystique and haunting beauty I found on the first three albums. With that said, I can still find areas of interest on Serpent’s Embrace and I continue to support Agathodaimon’s diversity of styles and sounds. In the end, I’m hopeful this album will be but a relatively weaker link in an overall body of interesting and creative music.

In terms of style, Elegant … and Dying is far more consistent, for better or worse, than the previously release Sombre Romantic, shedding variation of style to settle on slow to mid-paced doom. While Virgin Black are extremely adept at changing tempos seamlessly with both emotional and melodic effectiveness, they often fail to expand their songs and instead settle for long periods of drawn out dirges which lack either punch or passion. This is particularly unfortunate because brief moments of increased tempo are often quick flashes showing Virgin Black’s potential brilliance. The drumming particularly stands out on these occasions, but you’ll have to pay close attention to notice this talent as Dino Cielo is rarely expected to do much.

In addition to their slowed tempo, Virgin Black’s vocalist is also a defining characteristic of the music. For many of Virgin Black’s listeners, Rowan London’s voice seems to be a highlight of the music. For me however, it’s not the first time that praise for a vocalist has made me wonder what people are eating. London is often off key, over dramatic, and sounds strained and out of reach, especially on higher notes. I must admit however that his growling vocals on the song “Beloved” are exceptional, albeit brief.

As for the songs themselves, I can’t remember the last time I found the best song on an album its last, and its worst song the first, but the opening “Adorned in Ashes” is six dragging minutes which I’m sure loses many new listeners immediately. On the other hand, despite being perhaps the most mainstream song on the release, the final track is perhaps the finest. “Our Wings are Burning” varies tempos while balancing good singing with yearning melodies and a unique sound. The song “Velvet Tongue” is an excellent microcosm of the entire album. It’s an overall good song with moments of great beauty, but weak vocals. It is eight minutes long, but does not diverge from its basic pattern. Had Virgin Black taken the final three minutes to develop the song and expand their musicianship rather than becoming repetitive, the song could have been great. London’s lyrics on this song are also probably the best of the album. Along with the previously mentioned final track, “And the Kiss of God’s Mouth” is one of the best songs, building layers of emotion while combining despair with melodic lead guitar work and hooks.

Moving to the weaker tracks, “dead in the middle” is how I would describe tunes 5, 6, and 7. “Renaissance,” seventeen minutes of the aptly named “The Everlasting,” and “Cult of Crucifixion” provide thirty three minutes at the heart of the album when one could take a siesta … or be forced. While this might rejuvenate your body, it won’t rejuvenate your spirit for Virgin Black.

In conclusion, though Virgin Black seems to have both up and down sides on this album, it would not surprise me if in the coming years, should they be productive, they could release a classic album. Still, if unlike me, you enjoy eons of lethargic doom and Rowan London’s singing, this release might already be the classic. On the other hand, Virgin Black’s fade into obscurity, as they do in the middle of Elegant … and Dying, would not shock me either. With Virgin Black, really anything seems possible.

With that said, Visions from the Spiral Generator is a step backwards from Cosmic Genesis. On Cosmic Genesis, songs like “Astral and Arcane,” “Ars Memorativa,” “The Enigmatic Spirit,” and the title track contained clean vocal, soaring choruses matching the expansive lyrical content. This was backed by enough solid riffing, structural changes, measured melodies, and the tinge of black metal to evoke a dream of mystery. In Visions from the Spiral Generator, these clean vocal choruses and more experimental aspects are unfortunately more weakness than highlights. The black metal riffs and growls have strengthened on Visions, but there is not enough of that strength and it’s not really what makes Vintersorg so special anyway. Furthermore, the music and vocals seem disconnected and segmented at times, with one apparently implanted on the other without holism.

“Vem Styr Symmetrin” begins with an appropriate thunder, but loses its energy somewhere along the way. “Universums Dunkla Alfabet” also begins promisingly and even seems to flirt with greatness, but ultimately fails to connect and loses me with its campy chorus. “E.S.P. Mirage” is the low point for me when Vintersorg’s mysticism for the first time comes off as tacky with an awful chorus and a pseudo-cosmic guitar and keyboard opening. “A Metaphysical Drama” and “Spegelsfaren” are two of the stronger cuts on the release, but they also do not quite compete with Cosmic Genesis classics. “A Star-Guarded Coronation” contains interesting keyboards, a nice guitar solo, and good chorus, but it comes as too little too late.

Despite the letdown, it’s still a joy to read Vintersorg’s lyrics which are indeed themselves music to my ears. Not pretentious, random, or whimsical, Vintersorg’s words are coherent, insightful, questioning, and appreciative. They discuss and dissect cosmology, physics, and metaphysics with poetic swirls and in relation to human experience. Indeed, they hold a special place in artistry and metal music. Thus, it pains me to say anything negative about Vintersorg. His work is worthy of accolades and appreciation, deserving far more attention than he seems to gain. I encourage listeners to check out Vintersorg’s body of work, just don’t start out with Visions from the Spiral Generator.