The Serpent & the Sphere
The Serpent & the Sphere is the fifth and final studio album by American heavy metal band Agalloch. It was released on May 13, 2014 in the U.S., followed by releases on May 16 in Germany and May 19 in Europe.[1][2]
| The Serpent & the Sphere | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 13, 2014 | |||
| Studio | Cloud City Sound, Portland, Oregon Everything Hz, Portland, Oregon | |||
| Genre | Black metal, doom metal, folk metal | |||
| Length | 59:44 | |||
| Label | Profound Lore | |||
| Producer | Agalloch, Billy Anderson | |||
| Agalloch chronology | ||||
| ||||
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 84/100[3] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AbsolutePunk | 8/10[4] |
| AllMusic |    [5] |
| The Austin Chronicle | [6] |
| Exclaim! | 10/10[7] |
| Metal Hammer | 6/7[8] |
| Metal Storm | 8,3/10[9] |
| Pitchfork | 8.3/10[10] |
| Slant Magazine | [11] |
| Spin | 8/10[12] |
| Sputnikmusic | 2/5[13] |
The album received mostly positive reviews. Michael Toland of The Austin Chronicle described the album as "one boot in balmy progressive folk and the other in frigid black metal" with "some of its prettiest, most haunted acoustic textures and heaviest, raspiest roars". Kim Kelly of Spin stated that the band's "blackened sound" is "more pronounced than ever" while describing the production as "impeccable: Agalloch have never sounded so rich, so full".
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Birth and Death of the Pillars of Creation" | 10:28 |
| 2. | "(serpens caput)" | 3:06 |
| 3. | "The Astral Dialogue" | 5:11 |
| 4. | "Dark Matter Gods" | 8:36 |
| 5. | "Celestial Effigy" | 6:59 |
| 6. | "Cor Serpentis (the sphere)" | 2:58 |
| 7. | "Vales Beyond Dimension" | 6:48 |
| 8. | "Plateau of the Ages" | 12:26 |
| 9. | "(serpens cauda)" | 3:12 |
| Total length: | 59:44 | |
Personnel
- Agalloch
- John Haughm – guitars, acoustic guitar, vocals, whisper, percussion, art direction
- Don Anderson – guitars, piano, keyboards
- Jason William Walton – bass
- Aesop Dekker – drums
- Guest musicians
- Nathanaël Larochette (Musk Ox) – acoustic guitars (track 2, 6, 9)
- Technical
- Justin Weis – mastering
- Veleda Thorsson – photography
- Billy Anderson – production
References
- "Some news..." Agalloch. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
- "...and for the Europeans..." Agalloch. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
- "The Serpemt & the Sphere". Metacritic.com. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
- Jenkins, Jake. "Agalloch – The Serpent & The Sphere". AbsolutePunk. SpinMedia. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
- Monger, James Christopher. "Agalloch – The Serpent & The Sphere Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
- Toland, Michael (June 27, 2014). "Agalloch". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
- Walschots, Natalie (2014-05-12). "Album Review". Exclaim.ca. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
- Müller, Robert (June 2, 2014). "Review zum Album THE SERPENT & THE SPHERE von Agalloch". Metal Hammer (in German). TeamRock. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
- R'Vannith (May 13, 2014). "Agalloch – The Serpent & The Sphere review". Metal Storm. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
- Currin, Grayson (2014-05-16). "Agalloch: The Serpent and The Sphere". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2014-04-06.
- Sweeney, Joe (2014-05-09). "Agalloch: The Serpent & the Sphere | Music Review". Slant Magazine. Slantmagazine.com. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
- Kelly, Kim (May 14, 2014). "Agalloch's Blackened Folk Metal Soothes the Soul on 'The Serpent & the Sphere'". Spin. SpinMedia. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
- Ward, Kyle (2014-05-11). "Agalloch. The Serpent and The Sphere". Sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 2014-05-20.
- "AGALLOCH – Complete Work On New Album". Profound Lore Records. Retrieved March 19, 2014.
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