BELOVED ANTICHRIST

Yes Vladimir Soloviov was a very good philosopher. But this circumstance cannot compensate the flaws of the new album by Therion. Three hours of nothing. And the worst is that it's after six years of silence. Formulaic, primitive and laborious melodic themes, template arrangements, uniform performance of drums in all the songs... Very long, very pretentious and extremely boring. I remember Therion's glorious times: Theli, Vovin, Deggial, Lemuria, Sirius B... But since then they follow the same musical standard and most likely have exhausted its potential. It's like a soil depleted of nutrients. Sounded interesting and even intriguing when listened for the first time... and for the second time... and even for the hundredth time! - but now, after multiple self-repetitions in Gothic Kabbalah and Sitra Ahra, it sounds second-hand and set the teeth on edge. Just occasional flashes of originality amidst the darkness of triviality. The excess of pomp in composition and - on the other hand - the lack of ingenuity in melody making is critical. It's almost impossible to bear as much as three hours of this music. It hardly deserves more than thirty five minutes, and it would be the best possible duration for an album of this sort, of course if such an album is at all needed.