Sweden's, THE MOTH GATHERER, is back with "The Earth Is The Sky", the follow-up to 2013's "A Bright Celestial Light". Their style is best described as Post-Metal, including elements of industrial, doom, sludge and even progressive rock. With only six tracks, the total running time comes in at just over 48 minutes, but you won't feel cheated, as the album more than makes up in quality what it lacks in quantity.

These are not the tunes you'll be whistling as you head into work or school tomorrow. This is the type of album which is best listened to from beginning to end, sitting in your most comfortable chair and closing your eyes, just bathing in the sound waves as they flow through you. Post-Metal has been compared to the UK shoegaze movement of the late '80s, with multi-layered sonic textures creating soundscapes and this album is a perfect example.

"Pale Explosion" gets thing started with shimmering, sparse guitar chords before the heavyweight sludgy riffing kicks in. Ethereal, haunting vocals reminiscent of early THE CURE add to the feeling of isolation. But this is not the isolation of a moribund Goth in a bedsit, but the isolation you'd feel in the middle of a frozen wasteland. The production is stellar throughout, achieving a good level of separation for all of the instrumentation despite the many-layered approach.

"Attacus Atlas" continues with more epic doomy riffery in a KARMA TO BURN style, with some top-notch drumming. "Probing The Descent Of Man" has a very proggy opening figure before moving to a chord progression reminiscent of late '80s KILLING JOKE.

The instrumental "Dyatlov Pass" slows the pace down a little, and feels like it belongs on a movie soundtrack. John Carpenter's early electronic scores ("Assault On Precinct 13", "Escape From New York") come to mind. This is followed by probably the most "metal" track on the album, "The Black Antlers". A crushing opening riff and heavily distorted vocals verge on Black Metal.

The album closes with the 11-minute epic, "In Awe Before The Rapture". Slow, hesitant opening chords create a sparse and atmospheric background before a spoken word piece comes in at around the 4-minute mark. The piece ends triumphantly with monumental power chords ringing in the ears.

Incidentally, although this album was recorded as a three-piece, long-time live guitarist Ronny Westphal, has now joined as a full-time guitarist.

This towering album would appeal to fans of fans of CULT OF LUNA or NEUROSIS.<