I've listened to the new Ihsahn release several times after its acquisition & I must say that he's the standard to beat when it comes to the prog concept in metal.angL isn't quite the departure from his debut release, The Adversary but the album in whole displays added intensity & intricacy. Ihsahn's guitar playing capacity is unquestionably potent both riff & solo-wise. The level of complexity here is made palatable by catchy phrases; you can be uber prog in your music but it means nothing if it's forgetable.
It is also good to know that Ihsahn is backed by the lethal rhythm duo of Asgeir Mickelson & Lars Norberg (Spiral Architect); the drum works here are first class in terms of intensity & precision, the bass isn't about mere accompaniment either, Norberg managed to showcase his fretless prowess on more than one track.
Nevertheless, there would be critics saying Ihsahn had sold out in terms of his black metal commitment but both his releases thusfar were not black metal in their entirety, yes they do contain the BM fundamentals but these are peppered in context.
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