We’re back with the Good News, because apparently “good news” is a loose translation of the word evangelion, which also happens to be the name of the 2009 album from Behemoth.  And it is good news, because after the dulling of Nergal’s schtick with Demigod and The Apostasy (which I never bothered buying but a quick re-listen confirmed I made the right choice) Evangelion is a brutal return to form.

There’s an urgency to each track, starting off with the killer “Daimonos” and ripping right through “Shemhamforash” and “Ov Fire and the Void.” Nergal’s penchant for replacing “F” with “V” aside (an affectation I feel should only be reserved for Prince), this is some of the strongest set of tunes he’s written.  Working in the trio configuration the songs are light on ornate arrangements and really on sheer brutality and punishing directness.  Which isn’t to say it comes across as simple – each track is simply besotted with an abundance of riffs.

The difference here is that they all feel organic and integral to the album, and work to push things forward instead of running in place last the last five years with of recordings.  Seeing where things would end up with the next album, Evangelion feels like a massive creative burst, clearing the decks for what would turn out to be an even better follow-up album.