Far darker than its sprightly 2004 predecessor, And Blood Was Passion, Zebulon Pike's II: The Deafening Twilight's melodies don't unfurl seamlessly, but rather drag themselves up and down and over and around your noggin like they're scaling a climbing wall wearing a ball and chain.

Sometimes, during monumental tracks, the dark, crushing weight of the band presses down on your chest like so many boulders. The first album might have threaded its melancholy melodies with exuberant guitar harmonies and heart-pounding rave-ups, but here, every note feels hard-fought and precious. The compositions are heavy on their feet, trudging far more often than they run. In many ways, II: The Deafening Twilight is more intellectually exhilarating than And Blood Was the Passion , revealing a band that can fuse elements of 20th-century avant-garde composition, free improvisation, and doomy heavy metal seamlessly and still maintain a raw, emotional edge.

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