's self-imposed exile to the fringes of 's avant-garde persists unabated on 2005's ; but the Norwegians' first non- release in many a year also brings about some notable changes. Foremost among them being the decision to abandon some of the stark minimalism that characterized those efforts, so that by comparison, the predominantly synthesizer-wrought compositions on hand here sound positively sumptuous. Yet they are still far from noisy or explosive in a sense, with only 's reliably hellish (or at the very least cryptic) lyrics holding any last vestiges of the band's origins. As it stands, those provide but a few of the startling juxtapositions strewn about this typically atypical and unpredictable experience: including everything from moody and haunting ambience ( and the title track), to off-kilter, blocks of symphonic sound ( and ), to the occasional slice of urgent, quasi- rhythms of The latter's sudden denouement into a mock-orchestral synthesizer solo (recalling at once and early ) proves that really anything is possible, and the additional examples turned in by (featuring piercing, almost cartoonish stabs of -like, big-band samples) and (imagine from hell!) help corroborate the fact. Finally, there's the beautifully eerie collision of antiquity (more arrangements and instrumentation) and modernity (actual cell phone rings) comprising album standout And if you've noticed an abundance of classic references in the above descriptions, it's well worth noting that producer ( , , etc.) was on hand to affect many of these tracks (as were a bevy of guest musicians culled from the cream of Scandinavia's extreme musical arts). And, as one has come to expect from , the total end result is unfailing eclectic, remarkably inspiring, and never less than a brave step into the depths of the unknown. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia