In a brilliant comeback from the tepid Spiritual Healing, "Evil" Chuck again steals most of a band (Paul and Sean are from Cynic, Steve from Sadus) to have his way with us eager metalheads once again. The result: one of the greatest metal records ever released. This is a true landmark, Reinert effortlessly blasting past any percussive competition in one of the most exciting drum performences I've heard. The first of four albums where Chuck has managed to push the envelope successfully. Strong jazz and fusion elements are present here, but make no mistake, this is death metal, and the love 'em or leave 'em vocals remain. I guess I could describe this as a adrenalized Focus if I had to reference... but let's just say that this is the cornerstone of technical death metal, and one for the history books.