It is ironic how enlightening a look into the darkness of the abyss may be. As you stick your head out over the edge and spit into the tempest below you can't help but strike oil in the pit of revelation - whether you hit bottom or not.

In the Metal world, finding something novel often results from a very fortunate stab in the dark - or very prolonged meditation on the said murk.  Regardless, we love to look and sift through the blackened fog; for there is sure to be something delightfully obscure in there - something that will tickle the soul...whilst sinking its claws into it. And on their debut "Priests Of Annihilation" the Progressive Black Metal outfit ENTHEAN show that they are not afraid to reach into the depths of darkness in order to grab the most intriguing of musical spectres by the throat.

"Priests Of Annihilation" sounds like a deep forest study session between scholars of Death and Black Metal that is moderated by some Progressive tutorship; this record has it all. ENTHEAN introduce us to their delectably malicious blend of sounds with "1054", a metallic assault upon contented luminosity that growls with dissonant Black Metal interludes and stabs with sharp JUDAS PRIEST inspired riffs - all whilst disorienting the listener with curious melodic licks and technically proficient anomalies.

Moving on we have the thick, groove-laden "Tones of Desecration", which takes pages from the dog-eared textbooks of bands like PANTERA and decorates them with surprisingly adept, almost symphonically inspired images. The latter inclinations are also echoed in the Neo-Classically tinged "Dysthanasia", whose baroque melodies jump out of the viscous blackness with an almost tongue-in-cheek attitude; it surely makes your lips stretch into a cheeky grin.

ENTHEAN continue to push their Progressive boundaries on "Ekpyrosis" and "Bring Forth the Raven"; with the former featuring some blistering Flight of The Bumblebee-inspired sweeping action alongside further Neo-Classical finesse whilst the latter gushes with yet more musical fusion that even manages to stream into a heartfelt Blues solo.

Yet the most impressive aspect of this record is that even with all this overwhelming diversity the compositions maintain cohesion and credulity. In addition to that, whilst the highly technical tendencies of the band are prominent throughout the album, they are not wasted on vain ostentation and indeed adorn the tracks with unique melodic substance. The performances of the band members are of the highest order, with particular praising going out to the elaborate guitar work. The production is quite adequate, however, the vocal mix is rather inconsistent and often makes you lament that this is not an instrumental record. While the vocals themselves are appropriately apt, they often seem to be drowning under the weight of the expansive instrumentation and thus loose their relevance.

Overall - "Priests Of Annihilation" is a shiny flicker at the bottom of the well. ENTHEAN display a hearty potential as they dig through the darkest layers of experimental Metal in order to churn out an intricate albeit accessible and inspiring record that is sure to rattle the mind as well as the soul.