Where at Night the Wood Grouse Plays

I must admit, this album is superb. I honestly think Empyrium's other work far surpasses this though. The vocals are decent, but not nearly as prevalent or as emotional as in their other albums. The instrumentals, particularly the classical guitars, are skillfully played, yet slightly repetitive. Gotta love those apreggios though. The hilight of this album is without a doubt Many Moons Ago. Every aspect of this song owns the rest of the album. The rhythms are catchy and fucking amazing. The mournful backing of the guitar with the flute is a sound that tugs at my ventricles like baby yanking playfully at a phone cord. The vocal layering late into the song adds a magnificently etheral quality to it that soothes me instantly. All in all, this CD was great, but since I grade albums on a curve, contrasting it to other albums by that same band, I had to lower the score, since the others are considerably better. Albeit a lower standard than it's predecessors, this is a great work of art.