Review by UnhinderedbyTalent for Nocturnus AD - Paradox (2019)

There's an art to good storytelling.  I don't just mean the prerequisites we all got taught in school of ensuring all stories had a beginning, a middle and an end though.  Nocturnus AD as a band are a story all in themselves after their name change way back in 1999.  By that point we had already had the much lauded and praised The Key which had given us a first taste of what the band where capable of as far back as 1990.  The complex, twisting, progressive and constantly shifting narrative that the debut album encapsulated was always going to be a challenge to build on and the band struggled to come close to matching the levels of mastery when it came to Thresholds and Ethereal Tomb.

The good news is that after some twenty nine years of waiting, fans of the group finally got an album worthy as a successor to The Key.  Whilst not perfect and notwithstanding the fact that conceptual/technical death metal is a niche listening market, Paradox is grand in its scope and polished in its delivery covering lots of information and requiring close attention to detail to really enjoy.  For the first few tracks I had to adjust to the production job as it feels underwhelming at first and lacking in power, but once you realise that this is deliberate so the style can flow as intended and let the power come from the leads and soaring keyboards to elevate the power organically then it all makes sense and instantly becomes more palatable.

The thought that has gone into this record is noticeable as it does not just tell a story for storytelling sake.  Just as much attention has been paid to the instrumentation, arrangement and song-structure in order to ensure the album does not rely on just words to tell the tale.  The musicianship is excellent on here with the band playing well collectively as well as also letting the individual musicians shine where needed.  The guitar work is shredding perfection and the keys make a fine effort at trying to match them to give a real sci-fi edge to proceedings.  Browning's vocals are measured enough to add the required depth to the songs but not entirely steal the show and his drumming feels understated throughout.  The only mystery is Daniel Tucker's bass.  The former Obituary man isn't present at all in the mix, I mean we are talking ...And Justice For All proportions of a lack of bass here.

It is a great album and I don't know if it is to be termed as a debut, a follow up or just a plain old new release.  Whichever view we take the presence of the album is more than welcome regardless of how overdue it may be.