Demiurg is by no means your average stroll down death metal's corpse-strewn memory lane, mind you. It certainly racks up an impressive amount of street-cred with Dan Swano's presence and a recording job courtesy of his recently dusted down Unisound Studios. But the man behind it all is actually one Rogge Johannson, known for his work on Ribspreader and Paganizer. Even so, the shadow of Edge of Sanity looms heavily on songs like "Dreams Without End" and "Scorn Empire" -- seamlessly mixing short, sharp bursts of melody with grooves that would make any Bolt Thrower fan cream their combat trousers. "Monolithany" and its sequel found later on the album buck the trend somewhat, trading traces of death for streaks of black, while “Saranth” ends what's been billed as the first in a trilogy on a suitably dramatic note.

It's all thoughtfully pieced together too. A handful of darker synth-led sequences ensure an omnipresent atmosphere for the record's duration, and with Johannson's voice sounding as though he's gargling cement at the best of times, you'd be nothing short of a damn fool to give _Breath of the Demiurg_ a pass.