LEVIATHAN

Therion, as a band, really know how to bring it all to the table on each and every release: bombastic compositions complete with choirs, orchestras, competent musicianship, and lyrics depicting epic and obscure mythological tales and ideas. The only thing Therion consistently forgets to bring with them is inspired song writing. This is an act that lives and, ostensibly, commercially thrives in that fine space between forgettable mediocrity and mild intrigue, never quite living up (or down) enough to the standard to be regarded as either.

Leviathan, the veterans' acts' 17th(!) release and the first of a planned trilogy, is no exception to this... uhum... "winning" formula. Of course, to be fair to Therion, Christofer Johnsson, Therion's primary songwriter and founder, explained that Leviathan was indeed not an attempt to try anything knew but provide some fan service by capturing and distilling the "it" factor of their previous hits into a collection of singles. And yet the idea of Therion creating an album where they are actively trying to sound like their previous work reveals a deep-seated lack of self-awareness by the band and, quite honestly, their fans. But I guess if it is what their fans expect from them, more power to the band for making it happen anyway.

After the group's 2018 release, the admittedly under appreciated three-hour operatic epic Beloved Antichrist, it would have been nice to see the group attempt a more intimate approach to song writing. Alas, the Leviathan project instead shows the band has no intention of ever really letting up, despite whatever Christofer has said to the contrary...