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I was taken a little bit aback when I first listened to this album. It fires off with a bunch of kids yelling in unison and, as eerie as they sound in this intro, kids annoy me so we weren't off to a good start. ;) You don't have to listen for much longer to realize that Behemoth are trying something new here. I Loved You at Your Darkest incorporates a lot more experimentation and melody than their previous work, at times almost sounding artsy, and as such I would bet that some of their fans will dislike this, while they might gain new one because of the more diverse sound that makes the album more accessible, especially for those who usually can't endure 46 minutes of in-your-face, blasting black/death like Behemoth have mostly served us in the past.

Fear not, there's still quite a bit of the more "classic Behemoth sound" and therefore a sizeable chunk of the album can still punch your face in, but the parts where they go off the beaten path are bound to throw a few people off. You'll even find bits that are more akin to old-school heavy metal than to black/death here, like on "Sabbath Mater" where they break into that little interlude in the middle of a pounding blackened death onslaught. The vocals and musicianship are basically without reproach but, this is Behemoth, and they have nothing to prove in that regard. This one is still growing on me after several listens, so I suggest giving it several spins if your initial impression makes you want to dismiss it. I'm just hoping that they'll find a good balance and won't overdo their experiments in the future.