The band's 2003 release is their best so far, managing to somehow update the religious intensity of progressive rock technologically while keeping elements of Cedric and Omar's hardcore band At the Drive-In intact.
From its nine-minute epics "Metatron," "Calvalettas," and "Soothsayer" to its frantic two-minute spasms – "Wax Simulacra" and "Torquinet Man" – this is an album that doesn't let up, rarely letting the volume and tempo fall below the maximum.
This album is much more dynamic than The Bedlam in Goliath, incorporating Buckethead-esque acoustic guitar skills, as on "Since We've Been Wrong," and even hints of the blues making the album somewhat more accessible to a larger audience.
Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodríguez-López have been involved for a long time musically. This EP, released under the name of their former band At The Drive-In, is a great example of their past musicianship, and of how their style has evolved over the years.