By Jonathan Smith
The third offering from Sweden’s The Legion, A Bliss To Suffer doesn’t wait to try and crush its listeners. Even with a sprinkling of instrumental spots here and an added sound effect there, the core black/death elements emerge from the beginning of opening track “Shining Redemption” and remain more or less consistent throughout the album as a whole. Emil Dragutinovic’s drums are a particular notable feature, and there’s more than enough catchy blast beats here to encourage a major case of air drumming. A track like “Luring Depths” ends on a particularly eerie and atmospheric note, and additional similar little touches would be welcome. However, despite all the noise and technical chops, for the most part there’s a lack of unique moments that allow the album as a whole to stand out. However, repeated listens make a difference. What is here is pretty solid and entertaining, and ultimately A Bliss To Suffer works best when played as a whole.
(Listenable)
