& They Shall Take Up Serpents
West Virginia-based tech-metal band's sophomore album. Byzantine is total skull-flying M-E-T-A-L replete with wailing solos, thick acerbic vocals and vigorous time shifts that combined, can only hint at years of thrashing to the likes of Dark Angel, Forbidden and Exhorder. Scrupulous time-shifts and strategically placed off-beats give things a cold menacing appeal a la early Meshuggah. BMG. 2005.