Review by Rexorcist for Lurker of Chalice - Lurker of Chalice (2005)

Leviathan is one of the forerunners of the more emotional brand of black metal.  He has an almost unmatched ability to create sonic textures that leave you haunted, angry or crying.  This is most artistically present in his side project, Lurker of Chalice.  Not sure why he chose a different name, as I imagine that's not great marketing (maybe I'm naive about that), but the album still ended up being a staple in modern day atmo-black metal.  I ignored it for a while because I didn't realize it was a Leviathan project until only a few months ago.  Kickstarting my new List Challenge on Metal Academy, I figured this diversified work would be a good starting point, and it really was.  Songs are drenched in atmosphere, flawless and even elegantly disturbing soundscapes that are more shift in atmospheres than compositional melodies.  This is one of those albums that shouldn't, and I mean SHOULD NOT, build itself on melody, and I'm addicted to melody.  There are moments that are doomy and sorrowful, noisy and disturbing, beautiful and slightly melodic, all organized to put you through an alternate would where pain lies on every road and you're smackdab in the intersection, where the forks in the road stab you and feed you to the wolves.  There are a million different ways for the album to do this, and on most occasions it justifies absurd lengths, such as the ten minute This Blood Falls as Mortal Pt. 3.  Ironically, I found the first song, Piercing Where They Might, to be a bit too repetitive, even at six minutes.  The rest of the album is largely perfect.  I had a feeling this would end up being my pick for the best Leviathan release, and I was right.

98