The riffing is good but none of it stands out. Unfortunately the sub-par production brought the average down a few notches. This kind of music, in my view, needs a clear and massive production to deliver its full effect. It needs to sound big, especially when the composition relies on keyboards so much. Tracks like "Event Reborn" and "Frames Delayed" are a couple of examples where the keyboards take center stage with a very loud delivery despite presenting content that would at best fit as riff support. This degree of imbalance in the mixing makes for a weaker output and weakness is definitely a persistent pest on _Chronophage_.

The drumming fares a bit better than the keyboards though. The work done on "Within the Walls" and slightly more dynamic "Circles" adds some variety and a bit of welcomed technicality that attempt to minimized the overall weakness of these tracks but alas, its effects are short lived. "Spirals" is a slightly more intriguing piece with its enthusiastic galloping and clever transitions but unfortunately, again, the last minute just ruined the whole thing. "Hordes of the Endless Old" includes some good riffing and a very good intro but the vocals sound so far back in the mix to the extent that they actually hurt the music because of how awkwardly they're mixed in.

I tried to look for the positive points in _Chronophage_ but I had a very hard time finding them. Yes, there are some good riffs here and a few bars of good drumming, but when scattered over the course of fifty-five minutes and produced so poorly, they're meaningless. The whole record sounds weak and lacks any kind of punch that can make a lasting impression on me. Whenever I think of symphonic metal, I think of Septicflesh on the majestic _The Great Mass_ and Fleshgod Apocalypse on 2011's _Agony_ with their excruciatingly heavy sound, intelligible production and massive momentum. I don't think of _Chronophage_ and I probably never will.