In a genre in which mediocrity sets the standard, it's always fantastic to come across something so unique and different that it completely obliterates all neat little preconceptions about what a particular style should sound like. And at the forefront of this paradigm shift is the New York based Black Metal band IMPERIAL TRIUMPHANT, whose second full-length album "Abyssal Gods" is poised and ready to ravage the unsuspecting world.

From the get go, the album delivers a cacophonous onslaught that decimates all in its way, with "From Palaces of the Hive" sounding the first war horns. Even its slower and quieter sections serve to create an uneasy atmosphere. This is in stark contrast to the title track of the album, which starts with lamentations of the dying, giving way to rolling melodies that spirals through the depths of depravity before quickly fading out. "Opposing Holiness" is another outstanding track, with a chunky bass melody that leads the way to a technical blitzkrieg of sheer madness. However, for me, the pinnacle of the album is reached on "Krokodil", with its washing waves of almost celestial voices that break into a dirge-like melody. Ending off the album with "Metropolis", this is a free-form strident track that epitomises the experimental approach of IMPERIAL TRIUMPHANT perfectly. Drawing on the darkness of human existence for inspiration, this album is a complete amalgamation of different musical styles and influences which are melded into a chaos ridden miasma. The recording is also amazingly done: often bands that try to pull of such music end up with a tangle of layers that unravel at the slightest harmony change. However, "Abyssal Gods" sets the perfect example of how lunacy and bedlam can be tamed into a coherent whole without losing any of its tumultuous quality.

Served with a dash of savagery and a twist of technical mastery, and all delivered on a platter of talent and ingenuity, this album is nothing short of an experimental Black Metal maelstrom-like masterpiece, likely to garner highly polarised opinions. Whilst this album will not be everyone's preferred poison, if you're into such vanguard experimentalism, you will likely have found your top release of the year, and will absolutely love every pandemonium riddled second of "Abyssal Gods".