's first two albums, and , made it crystal clear that had no intention of being a carbon copy of despite the fact that included three ex-members of : lead singer/guitarist , bassist ( ), and drummer ). In contrast to the elaborate, that provided, thrived on rawness and were gritty, thrashy, -minded throwback to the pioneering bands of the late '80s and early '90s. But 's third album, , is a definite departure from -- not only because all of the lyrics are in Norwegian this time (English lyrics are excluded), but also, because brings somewhat closer to without actually emulating . While isn't in the way that 's albums were, this 2006/2007 recording is decidedly more musical than either or . falls short of the lushness of (there aren't a lot of clean vocals to go along with 's rasp), but the 45-minute disc brings into the realm and does so with compelling results. Traditional is a strong influence, and this is an album that -- for all its blistering, in-your-face intensity -- has a real sense of craftsmanship. If , , and lead guitarist (the only member who wasn't in ) set out to make an album that gave a more melodic identity without sounding very much like the melodic , they accomplished their goal. Creatively, is an impressive step forward for this Norwegian combo. ~ Alex Henderson