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Two years after Nile released Ithyphallic, the band releases their new opus, Those Whom the Gods Detest and while it is the same line up, the sound has undergone many changes. First, let me start with the obvious: this is a Nile album all the way through, every element that makes this band great is present on this album. The unreal musicianship, the riffs' heaviness, the Egyptian lyrical theme and the ultra long song titles – they all make an appearance here. However, to me the most striking difference with the rest of the discography is the variety that is featured on the record.

While Nile is far from a static and monotonous band, this is the only album that I can remember that has clean vocals in some songs. Normally that would have resulted in a mess but here the band makes it work – just listen to "Kafir!" and the title track. The variety doesn't stop there, "The 4th Arra of Dagon" is a slower, crushing song than what the band usually offers but it also has nice acoustic guitars, Nile just knows how to use them. Another difference here is the production; it presents a much clearer sound than any previous Nile album. You can listen to every note, every drum pattern and every vocal effect perfectly without the need for a whole lot of concentration.

The band musicality level is out of this world, I know that is always the case but here they seem to turn it up a notch. Karl Sanders and Dallas Toller Wade deliver catchy riffs and insane solos that are worth the price of the CD by themselves (the acoustic ones aren't too bad either). George Kollias' drumming is as intense as ever but here he is more precise, hitting every pattern with stunning efficiency. The death vocals are brutal as always but this time they're slightly more understandable and you don't need to have the lyrics in front of you to appreciate them.

Those Whom the Gods Detest is the only Nile album that I can listen throughout and not get bored by it or skip any tracks and honestly, I cannot find anything wrong with it. With its epic sound and unaltered fury, they have created a work of art and that is something I don't say often. For what it's worth, in my opinion this is the best Nile album ever and a strong contender for album of the year. If you are a fan of the band, then this is an absolute must buy; otherwise, this is the album that will absolutely win you over.