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I'm not as well versed in Primordial's discography as some of my fellow reviewers here—hell, that's true of the doom genre in general—but I've been listening to Exile Amongst the Ruins off and on for a while and I quite like it. It's not super depressing but nonetheless has that gloomy vibe that you expect from doom, though personally I find it more relaxing than anything else and that's more of what I look for in doom metal and Primordial's mix of folk and black metal does that. It's the kind of album I like to put on when I want some metal that will just let me kick back and relax while it's quietly kicking some ass. I especially like the vocals here, clean but with a slightly harsh tone that gives the songs a lot of power, a very convincing delivery. The album is unsurprisingly slow paced, with the occasional speedier parts, and it's musically kind of laid-back, though some parts really crank up the metal and get you out of whatever trance you might have been in. "For Hell or the Hangman" stands out, though, as it's faster and, well, better than the rest—depending on what you're looking for. Let's just say that when it comes on, you sit up and listen closely. Overall, the album is well balanced, with lots of relaxing, soothing songs but enough "rocking" metallic moments to keep things interesting.