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I was not a fan of this band's last full-length—their first for new label Relapse Records—and I was not sure if I should be eager to hear this new EP. Their last album showed them simplifying and dumbing down their sound, but this one is a lot better.

I hear the sound of a band trying to work their signature style into a new form, and while they are not quite there yet, you can tell they are getting the idea. This starts with the layered, shaded approach of their older works, while also adding some more ambient elements and finishing the whole thing with a harder Black Metal edge than what they usually dig into. It pulls in pieces from all their past works—the acoustic sounds from Two Hunters, the epic sweep of Diadem of Twelve Stars, the fiercer groove of Thrice Woven—the more I listen to this the more I like it, and the more I think they are on the right track. Every time I think this band has done all they are going to do, they come back and surprise me. I hope their next album keeps that going.