review by: ~Vargscarr~

Like the bellow of the fabled Sphinx bouncing on hieroglyphed sandstone walls as it echoes from labyrinthine catacombs beneath the great pyramid comes Nile's third release. To my ear, this is how all Death Metal should sound: primed with a loathsome and powerful sense of true evil - intelligent and sincere - that churns and rumbles maliciously at the very heart of its explosive guttural bludgeoning. This is largely due to Nile's lyrical and musical inspiration - the murky myth and history of cryptic and ancient Egypt - but more than that; it's the way the band uses this inspiration creatively and bends it to its mysterious and sinister musical will.

The songs on this album truly represent the development of Nile's style; perhaps lacking the charm of their first album, where the Egyptian influences were more blatant, introduced as breaks in the metallic sandstorm, juxtaposed against the brutality as opposed to being so well integrated into the fabric of every composition as they now are - but this is to be expected. This is a band evolving without losing sight of their entrenched artistic goals. They have taken their original ideas - ideas many believed to be a gimmick that would dry up after their second masterpiece, Black Seeds of Vengeance - and brought them forth yet again in a different way. To their credit, the band have also cleaned up the somewhat too bassy production that gave an unwelcome blunting to the edge of their last work, opting for a sharper, more balanced sound akin to a richer version of the production on their debut CD.

In addition to these slight compositional developments, Nile also attempt a more epic style on this album, and this they do highly successfully with the twelve minute "Unas Slayer of the Gods" (relating to the myth of the Pharaoh who defied the gods and consumed their flesh; gaining both their wisdom and immortality) and "In Their Darkened Shrines": a conceptual piece that comprises the last four tracks on the CD. Despite the length of these two works, the tracks are bursting with that entrancing pairing of simple, catchy riffs and masterfully technical guitar sluttery; complemented by awe inspiring, unrelenting drum patterns. This is Nile's signature sound, and the band's prowess does not waver throughout the 58-minute album.

This classic Death Metal style - oft attempted, seldom perfected - is then fleshed out with the added muscle of the ethnic influences. Who cares if the music in the Valley of Kings sounded nothing like this 3,000 years ago? The important thing is not historicity but evocation; and nothing plants a scarab in the imagination quite like the echoing choirs, blasphemous pipings and spectral flutes of our contemporary North African stereotype. Nile's music utilises this well-known and emotionally provocative style without cliché, blending it sublimely with eastern sounding riffs and contemporary brutal Death Metal.

If you've heard Nile you'll have long since reached your conclusion regarding their music in relation to your tastes - know then that this is more of the same, and better. If however you have yet to experience the band, I'd say this album or Amongst the Catacombs of Nephren Ka are equally good starting points if you wish to become better acquainted with this bastion of modern, pure Metal.

review by: Roberto Martinelli

As usual, Nile has put together an album that's as impressive musically as it is athletically. How is it possible for any of these musicians to play like this? The fantasy Egypt theme remains in full force, and the songs are largely in the same vein as Black Seeds of Vengeance, but perhaps MORE extreme. The whopper track, the 11-minute "Unas, Slayer of the Gods" could be the highlight of the disk if the listener has never heard Candlemass, as the main riff for that track is nearly note for note the same as "Well of Souls." This is kind of weird at first but gets more annoying and unpleasant with each successive listen. The Egyptian fantasy dramatics can also get a little out of hand sometimes, too. Still a doubtless must buy.