It might not be such a big surprise that Nile’s fifth studio album adheres to the same formula the metal public has come to expect: athletic, blurry fast musicianship, lots and lots of snare rolls that build up into ripping part after ripping part, and heaping amounts of Egyptian mythological worship as might be portrayed in an Indiana Jones movie.

But it’s basically exactly the same thing as every other Nile album, particularly the last one, Annihilation of the Wicked. So as far as artistic development, there isn’t anything to write home about. But that’s cool, as Nile’s formula has propelled them to where they are, and as always, you can immediately tell whom you’re listening to.

Artistic blandness aside, Ithyphallic is clearly Nile’s least enjoyable album, and to that one only has to listen to the album’s production. Nile is raging as much as ever, but they have made a bad decision to present their music with a very polished sound, albeit within a death metal framework.

At first, Ithyphallic’s drums appear to be much too loud. But after further consideration, it becomes apparent that it’s more like the rest of what’s going on is so weak sounding. The guitar tone is thin and unremarkable, the vocals are gruff but lack dirt. The drums, while machine-perfect, are clinical and banal. Altogether, Ithyphallic has sacrificed soul for digital clarity, which is a poorly conceived (yet sadly all too common) notion of what would give a death metal album power.

Nile’s greatest album is In Their Darkened Shrines (followed closely by Black Seeds of Vengeance, but I like the drums better on the former). It’s no coincidence that In Their Darkened Shrines is also Nile’s dirtiest album. It’s absolute mud compared to the last couple studio records, but as far as tearing down catacombs from the inside, that album achieves it better than anything else they’ve done. The rhythm guitar is chunky and rumbling, the toms have that great milk jug wood resonance to them, the slow parts are heavy, and the solos tear through the speakers. As a result of this, the blast beats (played by the superior drummer Tony Laureano) launch you along each time they appear, and although the playing is perfect, it’s *humanly* perfect, and that goes a hell of a lot farther than the sterile humdrum that is Ithyphallic.

I don’t know whether it’s the tediously polite sound, or if Nile really is running through their motions, as high and proficient those may be, but after four complete listens, there isn’t a single memorable moment to be found in Ithyphallic. I guess the synthetic horns and stomps during the obligatory "ancient" "Egypt" parts are fuller and more "convincing" than ever, but who buys albums for intros?

Nile’s releasing an album is always warranted cause for excitement. And Ithyphallic isn’t a failure, but it is a disappointment. If you’ve got all of Nile’s other stuff, you’ll still want to get this album. But hope that Nile can divorce themselves from the all too prevalent notion in death metal that success can be found in the substitution of grit for clarity, and go to a more organic sound. My guess is it’ll only get worse from here, and that to Nile themselves, In Their Darkened Shrines is in fact the mistake. (5.6/10)