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This is the last of the four Root albums that I recently received, and I was highly looking forward to listening to Root's magnum opus, as many had called it was. That being said, the album is spectacular, but not as mind-blowing from the start as I had expected. It definitely retains that "Root" sound the band perfected with The Temple in the Underworld, and if you liked that album then you are almost guaranteed to enjoy this one, but there's just a little something that doesn't make it as appealing as the aforementioned release. The band does not lose their momentum on this album in any way; it should just be known that despite what I had heard about this "perfect" Black Metal album with symphonic elements, it falls only slightly short of expectations.

Henceforth, on my first play through I did not enjoy The Book as much as The Temple in the Underworld, but as soon as I decided it was time to stop expecting what other people had told me of the release and just take it as it is, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The album opener, "The Book," does a great job of setting the tone of the release with a slow, churning introduction that builds up in suspense before erupting into an assault of great Black Metal riffage. The song sounds dark, evil and all around great. Tracks like "The Mystical Words of the Wise," "The Curse – Durron," and "Remember Me!" do a fantastic job of complementing the atmosphere set by the opening track, all while maintaining their own distinct sound. This is one of the best aspects of Root and one of the reasons why they are some of the best songwriters in the metal spectrum… they can compose songs that all have the same ambiance while sounding completely different and distinguishable from one another… truly an aspect of talented and dedicated musicians.

In general, The Book is fantastic. It's easy to get sucked in from the beginning and remain engrossed in the atmosphere the band sets. Every song is distinct from one another and is virtually without flaws, so this album is definitely a must-have, despite the fact that it's not as amazing as The Temple in the Underworld.

Additional Information

Re-issue on I Hate Records reviewed here.