Band:	Vulture Industries
Album:	The Malefactor's Bloody Register
Style:	Avantgarde metal, Progressive metal
Release date:	September 2010

01. Crooks & Sinners
02. Race For The Gallows
03. The Hangman's Hatch
04. The Bolted Door
05. This Cursed Flesh
06. I Hung My Heart On Harrow Square
07. Crowning The Cycle
08. Of Branded Blood

In the absence of Arcturus (of the mid era to be more precise), The Dystopia Journals was a big boost on the avant-garde steps upon which their renowned co-country mates reflected their anxious mind. Three years later Bergen starts dancing incoherently once again, The Malefactor's Bloody Register, Vulture Industries' second full-length to date, is reality and it's here to confuse us all with its heretic nature.

I still consider their debut album more complex and inspired, but don't misinterpret me, The Malefactor's Bloody Register isn't and can't be your next common work around, they still like it obscure, overwhelming and entrancing through whirling key signatures that try to trespass the boundaries of your mind. It's just that on their second effort they depict a more structured and massive aura upon their naturally flowing chaos rather than the story-telling character their flow used to possess, leaving you unaware of what to expect.

Bjørnar E. Nilsen offers once again an extraterrestrial interpretation and despite sounding like the little brother of La Masquerade Infernale Garm he manages to sound magnificent and with a sense of demented grandeur whether he disenchants the night from a satellite from afar or shrieks in trance, whispers in paranoia or whatever way he entraps his expression within his vocal chords. The guitars accompany him in the same way, they never fail to present mind-flirting ideas through soloing moments, riffing, leads, melodies which consist of the main body of the album that steps upon the tight foundations the rhythm section so frequently managed to compose. Yet apart from those, the keyboards, the FX, the slight electronics and some sort of sampling along with the guest appearance of the Hammond organ, make their appearance whenever the ambiance desires so, keeping alive the affiliation of the band with diversity, on a lesser role this time though.

As it happened with its predecessor, the album doesn't surpass the 44 minutes in duration, Vulture Industries tend to unfold everything they have to say within a welcome amount of time without tiring the listener. Although someone might have expected something more, including me, The Malefactor's Bloody Register remains still a good release to keep the heart of their fans both in shape and pulse, but also ring the biological clock of all those nostalgic ones remembering the Arcturus-esque aesthetic. Inspiration, creativity and atmosphere are existent, yet this time Vulture Industries lack a bit of them all. What shine through their absence have to be the moments that will shake your mind with delight in a wide range and part of their theatrical vibe, along with the fact the album strengthens in character mainly during the second half, from "This Cursed Flesh" and on.

Proceed at your own risk, this album holds three faces, either it will satisfy you for its more massive composing manner or you will miss the vast diversity and find it not that pleasing; well, the third truth lies somewhere in the middle, something like it pleased you but it could have been better, that's where my personal truth lies. I can wait until the next time, hoping they won't become "Grim Apparitions" of themselves.

Where's your mask? Oh, you can hang it from this rope!