DIADEM OF 12 STARS

The debut album by Wolves In the Throne Room might not be quite as startlingly different as the likes of, say, Celestial Lineage, but the seeds of their more original sound were sown here. Focusing exclusively on longer compositions, the band alternate between faster playing and slower, doomier sections, with a few hints of the complex compositional techniques of post- metal creeping in here and there, and on the whole the band have already done a good job of distinguishing themselves from Burzum, their primary musical influence. Although the band would go onto substantially greater things, this is the solid foundation on which their subsequent work is built.