GARDEN OF DELIGHT

I'm almost afraid to think what forces fuel the creativity of this international collective. Perhaps they are simply gifted people, or perhaps they sold their souls to the devil; perhaps forces far more ancient and powerful are at work here. But regardless, one full-length album per year (plus a slew of singles) is impressive, even considering the fact that goths are almost always particularly prolific. It is pleasant (while listening) to realize that quality in this case has not been sacrificed for quantity — the quality here is at the highest level, and that is yet another thing beyond comprehension. On this album, the band confidently demonstrates an even stronger lean toward electro stylings that first emerged on Lutherion, though the harsh guitar sound has not been pushed to the background either. Remarkably, the hard, almost danceable electro rhythms coexist very successfully and appropriately alongside quite heavy (by standard gothic rock measures) guitar crunch. No less successfully, the music of these German-French occultists combines the hoarse, roaring vocals of Artaud Seth, strung over almost gothic-metal riffs, with dark, slightly eerie dark ambient passages filled with otherworldly whispers, the weeping of angels, the cawing of crows, and the heavy breathing of dreadful creatures inhabiting some dark corners of hell. An excellent album that confidently concludes (?) the epic trilogy.