The first four minutes of “Paradigms of Nyx”, the song that opens the eighth album from the band led by singer/guitarist V. Priest, promise a trip into fairly standard, raging black metal territory, but then the piece takes an unexpected turn: the fury gives way to a slow and heady melody that bodes well for the rest of the journey. The rest of Psychic Death – The Shattering of Perceptions follows this approach, in which black metal is unleashed for a few minutes before giving way to the occult and mystical influences that punctuate Acherontas’ discography. The formula is particularly effective on “The Brazen Experimentalist”, “Coiled Splendor” and “Sermons of the Psyche”. For its part, the introspective “Magick of Mirrors” stands out because of the influence of heavy metal in the melody, and V. Priest’s abandonment of his black-metal voice in favour of reciting his text.
