A SCEPTIC'S UNIVERSE

This album is a must-have for any fan of twisted technical progressive metal. It has a lot of jazz/fusion influences while maintaining the harshness and heaviness of heavy metal. Spiral Architect play unbiased, interesting music, not limited to one style - you'll hear growls, clean singing, acoustic guitars, brutal parts, lighter parts... Everything on one CD. In the beggining, I haven't really understood their music, but as I listened to the album more and more times, I was surprised by what this album has to offer. The technical abilities of these guys are not to be questioned - they CAN play. The only bad thing about the album is its duration - only 43 minutes, but with music as interesting as this, you can easily get over it.

A side note - the Japanese version of the album contains a bonus track - a Fates Warning cover of "Prelude to Ruin."