SOL NIGER WITHIN

As far as albums from metal-jazz fusion bands such as Exivious and Cynic go, this album is the strongest that I've come across so far. Overall, it comes across as a kind of nightmare-- a beautiful darkness or hell, if you will. Compared to Meshuggah, it's less brutal/extreme, and it's as if the melodic sections from the guitar solos were extended into full-fledge song ideas. I agree with other reviewers in that some sections can become a bit repetitive, and sometimes, screaming is inserted into the mix in the most repetitive parts.

I wish that more music of this quality and genre were available. Other jazz fusion that I've listened to is sometimes boring and aimless, and other technical/extreme progressive metal is often complex for its own sake, while sacrificing compositional coherence and/or flow.