Aeon is
Zyklon's second album and proves them to be more than a mere all-star, side-project band. (Guitarist
Samoth and drummer Trym are better known as ex-members of
Emperor, while lead guitarist Destructhor was in
Myrkskog.) This album refines and builds on the sound laid out on
World OV Worms, with futuristic/apocalyptic lyrics and an overall blasting death metal approach that's closer to
Morbid Angel or later
Behemoth than to
Emperor. One improvement on this album is the production. On
World OV Worms, it seemed like every instrument (including the vocals) was competing to be the loudest one in the mix, but it was still hard to tell what was going on. Here, the sound is much clearer, though without sacrificing any heaviness, and, thankfully, there are still none of the phony-sounding drums or over-processed guitar tones that marred so many other contemporary death metal CDs. And it's nice to be able to hear them better, because this band can really play -- Trym's drumming is fast and powerful and Destructhor and
Samoth's guitar interplay is cruel and surgically precise. Songwriting-wise, there's a lot of
Morbid Angel worship going on -- the churning main riff on "Core Solution" is pure
Formulas Fatal to the Flesh material -- but
Zyklon adds their own slant with cold, black metal-ish guitar harmonies, occasional, (mostly) tasteful keyboard layerings, and electronic accents. This album starts out strong, including highlights such as the title track and "Subtle Manipulation," before trailing off toward the end and closing anti-climactically with "An Eclectic Manner." That song includes attempts at semi-melodic singing similar to that on
World OV Worms' closing track, "Transcendental War -- Battle Between Gods," only here they're not as successful. On a peripheral note, the cyber-themed artwork is a nice contrast to death metal's clichés, as are the thoughtful explanations (written by
Emperor drummer and convicted murderer Bård "Faust" Eithun) that accompany the lyrics to each song. ("This describes the immorality and vileness of a possible future scenario, where materialism, superficial mind-patterns, and globalized disregard...turn into anarchy and post-civilization," reads the one for "Zyklon Aeon.") On the whole, this album is not a classic, but it's better than average as modern death metal goes. ~ William York