siLLy puPPy After the guitar galloping mix of metal and symphonic classical opera on “Theli,” THERION catapulted itself into the metal big leagues and quickly went on tour but after a couple albums of leftovers and the much mellower vibe on the true followup “Vovin,” it seemed THERION was mellowing out and gravitating more towards the opera and neglecting its metal head banging duties. On the band’s ninth album DEGGIAL there is a quickened beeline back to the metal aspects of the band that helped it evolve into its unique hybrid in the first place. DEGGIAL (or Dejjial) refers to an evil figure in Islamic eschatology which will purportedly come into being and pose as the true Messiah and so THERION once again addresses the metaphysical and occult themes as it has from the beginning.

At this point band leader Christofer Johnsson had become very aware of how stale this sort of metal opera thing could become and was taking the time to innovate interesting compositions that set the perfect balance between classic metal guitar riffs inspired by old school metal such as Iron Maiden, Did or Accept but was also careful not to repeat styles too often and therefore was finding grittier sounds mined from more progressive thinking metal bands like Celtic Frost or Voivod. While still completely steeped in the expected operatic classical sounds that defined their new style of symphonic metal, DEGGIAL consists not only of four band members at this point but includes four guest musicians, eight members of the choir and an orchestra that finds another eleven musicians adding their stamp to the ornate tapestry of sound that emerges from the eleven tracks presented.

What sets DEGGIAL apart form albums like “Theli” and “Vovin” is that it finds some sort of middle ground between the two extremes. “Theli” has always seemed like a metal album where the operatic elements are competing for domination and “Vovin” on the other hand feels like the operatic touches won the battle while they kept the metal heft on a leash. On DEGGIAL the two disparate styles have signed a truce and conspire to eke out the best of each other with no competitive bravado dampening the ceremonious harmonic possibilities. On the metal side of the equation, the guitar, bass and drumming are more diverse as they tackle elements of classic 80s metal, alternative metal as well as moments of thrash, speed metal and gothic rock. For the classical choirs, there is a lot more emphasis placed upon more integrate harmonies that usually involve a male and female counterpoint with the rest of the vocalists occasionally creating a more polyphonic approach.

There are also more wind instruments on this one with flute, oboe as well as heavier brass with a French horn, flugelhorn, trumpet and tuba. While many tracks in the recent past mostly were set on simmer with mellow folk or slow ratcheting divas singing over softly strummed guitars or the exact opposite with blistering metal with guitar solos, DEGGIAL offers many styles within individual tracks. “Seven Secrets Of The Sphinx” begins with a heavy guitar riff and male tenors but is then joined in by a rather progressive psychedelic keyboard run and woodwinds, a clear sign that the compositions have been crafted in a way that is much more inventive. Just in the first track alone there are many different movements with varying guitar riffs, vocal performances as well as uses for the other instruments. This only continues throughout the album as “Eternal Return” follows with a slow vocal choir performance accompanied only by a violin and double bass but then drifts into a folk sound and then again breaks out the Maiden inspired metal riffing.

The title track is one of the stranger ones as it adds some sort of sound effect that sounds like a Jew’s harp along with the choirs. The track is slow and sensual but the towards the end cranks out some crushing metal heft with the divas and violins joining in the quickened pace. While both heavy and softer passages are readily available, DEGGIAL delivers the exact right juxtaposition of opposite polarities and paces things extremely well. “The Flight Of The Lord Of Flies” is THERION’s answer to “Flight Of The Bumblebee” and is a feisty rocker that rocks the violin, soprano vocals and guitar shredding. It’s short and sweet and makes a great introduction to the heavy metal thunder of “Flesh Of The Gods” which finds Blind Guardian’s Hansi Kürsch on vocals along with the operatic divas minus the classical instrumentation. The lengthy “Via Nocturna (Part I and II)” at just shy of 10 minutes is the most progressive track as it sounds like an authentic metal opera that mixes metal segments with unadulterated opera, folk and progressive rock. The album close with a cover of Orff’s “O Fortuna” from his famous cantata “Carmina Burana.”

For my money, DEGGIAL is a step up from both “Theli” and “Vovin,” both of which were excellent in their own right but on this one the creative juices were dialed up a few notches where every inspiration from both the metal universe and the annals of the world of classical and opera where also raided. The way that the music works in tandem is absolutely brilliant and there are only a few moments where i feel a few notes were misplaced and it derails the flow but those are few and far between. For the most part this one is smooth sailing and Johnsson proves that he had the mojo to take things to the next level instead of constantly retreading on the success of “Theli” and “Vovin.” While DEGGIAL won’t sound radically different from previous albums in many ways, to a trained ear that listens to the detailed elements and how they interact it is quite staggering. For the casual listener this will come across as a highly melodic mix of classic heavy metal with a symphonic orchestra and talented choir. Either way, this is a divine and dramatic recording that ranks high on my list of THERION favorites.

Warthur One transitional album as a band evolves between styles is an acceptable indulgence; two in a row feels excessive. If you dug the preceding Vovin, Deggial offers up more of the same, but for me I felt that Therion still hadn't quite become comfortable with the more purely symphonic metal approach (with nary a trace of their death metal roots) they utilise here and on the preceding album. Still, Therion don't quite manage to exhaust my patience with them - in particular, Kristian Niemann shows this uncanny knack for coming in with a really interesting guitar solo just as my finger is wavering towards the "skip" button - but alas, that isn't quite good enough to stop me pressing it.

bonnek I had ignored this album as I found Therion were gradually losing their originality and creativity. I had really enjoyed Theli and Vovin but a number of reasons had made me do big detours around anything called Therion from 1999 onwards: the repetitive approach of Vovin, the stop-gap called The Crowning of Atlantis and the assembly line products Lemuria/Sirius B.

As I had expected, there's nothing on offer that we haven't heard on other Therion albums, but the crunchy guitar work from new axe man Kristian Niemann is good improvement. His galloping NWOBHM riffs kick Therion out of its imminent lethargic state. In fact, due to its energy boost, this album sounds more like a follow up for Theli then Vovin did. The songs have a lot more metal punch in them and there's more variation.

Next to the guitarist, also the choir and orchestra are a real treat and generally, Therion sound like a band having lots of fun at what they are doing again. The opener Seven Secrets is the best song on the album and serves as an excellent example: crisp guitars, big choir arrangements and good melodies. Eternal Return goes for a more gentle approach, a bit musical-alike at times but with occasional up-tempo parts that seem to come straight out of Iron Maiden and Rainbow albums.

Enter Vril-Ya is a classic hard rock stomp. As usual with Therion, they know how to make the most out of a simple idea. The choir is really excellent here, dark and menacing. In fact, as the closing track of the album proves, it all seems to come right out of the Carmina Burana: songs about drinking, lust, gluttony and similar types of medieval fun.

The quality goes a bit up and down. Some songs like Ships of Luna and The Invincible rely too heavily on the effect made by the overwhelming arrangements and big choirs , probably in order to hide that the songwriting isn’t all that impressive really. Still, there are good moments, like Deggial that saves itself from anonymity by a good tempo change at the end.

The short Lord of Flies is a little energetic piece and one of the highpoints. With Flesh of the Gods they put in a stab of shameless hairmetal that is simply irresistible. The fun they had with this one is no less than contagious. Via Nocturna is a typical Therion track that I've simply heard too much by now. They handled the Orff cover O Fortuna with their usual good judgement, not too bombastic (a relative thing), with just some celestial rock drums accompanying the choir and orchestra. Works for me.

From this album onwards things declined rapidly for Therion. The following albums might still appeal to die-hard fans or to people not familiar with Therion, but for anyone else they’re unnecessary. The conclusion stands that Therion stopped evolving after Vovin, but with Deggial they at least added a nice selection of songs to their canon. Not their best but a good album nevertheless and not a bad start for Therion newbies.