I'll take this opportunity to finally post. As far as INRI goes, I can only speak to my experience.
My introduction to Novembers Doom was The Novella Reservoir. I enjoyed it, but it didn't knock my socks off or anything. When I got it, I would regularly blast it on the shitty stereo in my shop. With the crap speakers and all the noise I made working, all I could really hear were the riffs and growls. And while those are great, riffs and growls alone aren't enough for me to truly love an album or band. I got tired of it after a little while and set it aside.
I was looking forward to INRI, and when I finally heard it I remember feeling disappointed, to be honest. I didn't think the riffs were as catchy or engaging as those in NR. My impression, as I remember it, was that the tunes were a little awkward, and didn't seem to have the immediacy and power that those on NR have. I thought it was a weak step backward. I listened to it a couple times and abandoned it.
Now just a few months ago I found myself absolutely sick of all of my music and having a hell of a time finding anything new that I liked, so I decided to go back through my collection and revisit some old albums. I threw on NR, but this time I was working on my computer and listening through headphones. It was a totally different experience. It was more than riffs and growls. I heard more elements in the songs, and I got a better sense of the atmosphere and feeling you guys had created. It completely resonated with me, and I felt like I had discovered my new favorite album. I thought that if I wasn't able to appreciate NR the first time around, maybe I also hadn't heard INRI for what it was.
I threw that one on and had the same experience. There was much more there than I heard the first few times. I didn't like all of the songs right off the bat, and I only listened to certain ones. Eventually, I listened to the rest, and got on board with what you were trying to do. INRI has become my favorite Novembers Doom album (although Aphotic is kicking it's ass at the moment). And all three of your last albums have solidified Novembers Doom as one of my favorite bands.
So with that perspective, I'll also say this about INRI. I do think the songs are heavier and denser, and my impression of it has been that it's more deathy and less doomy than your earlier albums. When I first heard it, I was listening to more doom, and I anticipated more deathy doom instead of doomy death (I know how lame that sounds), so that might have played a part in my reaction. Compared to NR, and especially Aphotic, there's less movement within each song. The songs either feel like a huge slab of concrete coming down, or like a train barreling forward, confined to a single direction. The riffs are less catchy, and I'm less likely to hum a song from INRI in my head than a song from another album. This is not a bad thing to me, because I don't think songs have to be catchy or hummable to be great, and obviously it's been my favorite album until Aphotic. Though when Aphotic becomes more familiar, INRI might reclaim it's place as my favorite ND album. I kind of doubt it, but time will tell.
Brilliant.
