The Serpent & the Sphere

The Serpent & the Sphere
Studio album by Agalloch
Released	May 13, 2014
Studio	Cloud City Sound, Portland, Oregon Everything Hz, Portland, Oregon
Genre	Black metal, doom metal, folk metal
Length	59:44
Label	Profound Lore
Producer	Agalloch, Billy Anderson
Agalloch chronology
Faustian Echoes (2012) The Serpent & the Sphere (2014) ""Alpha Serpentis (Unukalhai)" single (2014)

The Serpent & the Sphere is the fifth studio album by American heavy metal band Agalloch. It was released on May 13, 2014 in the U.S., followed by releases on May 16 in Germany and May 19 in Europe. ^{[1] [2]}

Reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	84/100 [3]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AbsolutePunk	8/10 [4]
AllMusic	[5]
The Austin Chronicle	[6]
Exclaim!	10/10 [7]
Metal Hammer	6/7 [8]
Metal Storm	8,3/10 [9]
Pitchfork	8.3/10 [10]
Slant Magazine	[11]
Spin	8/10 [12]
Sputnikmusic	2/5 [13]

The album received mostly positive reviews. Michael Toland of The Austin Chronicle described the album as "one boot in balmy progressive folk and the other in frigid black metal" with "some of its prettiest, most haunted acoustic textures and heaviest, raspiest roars". Kim Kelly of Spin stated that the band's "blackened sound" is "more pronounced than ever" while describing the production as "impeccable: Agalloch have never sounded so rich, so full".

Track listing

The Serpent & the Sphere track listing ^[14]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Birth and Death of the Pillars of Creation"	10:28
2.	"(serpens caput)"	3:06
3.	"The Astral Dialogue"	5:11
4.	"Dark Matter Gods"	8:36
5.	"Celestial Effigy"	6:59
6.	"Cor Serpentis (the sphere)"	2:58
7.	"Vales Beyond Dimension"	6:48
8.	"Plateau of the Ages"	12:26
9.	"(serpens cauda)"	3:12
Total length:		59:44

Personnel

Agalloch

• John Haughm – guitars, acoustic guitar, vocals, whisper, percussion, art direction
• Don Anderson – guitars, piano, keyboards
• Jason William Walton – bass
• Aesop Dekker – drums

Guest musicians

• Nathanaël Larochette (Musk Ox) – acoustic guitars (track 2, 6, 9)

Technical

• Justin Weis – mastering
• Veleda Thorsson – photography
• Billy Anderson – production

References

1. "Some news..." Agalloch. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
2. "...and for the Europeans..." Agalloch. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
3. "The Serpemt & the Sphere". Metacritic.com. Retrieved May 14, 2014.
4. Jenkins, Jake. "Agalloch – The Serpent & The Sphere". AbsolutePunk. SpinMedia . Retrieved February 28, 2015.
5. Monger, James Christopher. "Agalloch – The Serpent & The Sphere Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic . Retrieved June 8, 2023.
6. Toland, Michael (June 27, 2014). "Agalloch". The Austin Chronicle . Retrieved February 28, 2015.
7. Walschots, Natalie (May 12, 2014). "Album Review". Exclaim.ca. Retrieved May 14, 2014.
8. Müller, Robert (June 2, 2014). "Review zum Album THE SERPENT & THE SPHERE von Agalloch". Metal Hammer (in German). TeamRock. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
9. R'Vannith (May 13, 2014). "Agalloch – The Serpent & The Sphere review". Metal Storm . Retrieved February 28, 2015.
10. Currin, Grayson (May 16, 2014). "Agalloch: The Serpent and The Sphere". Pitchfork . Retrieved April 6, 2014.
11. Sweeney, Joe (May 9, 2014). "Agalloch: The Serpent & the Sphere | Music Review". Slant Magazine. Slantmagazine.com. Retrieved May 14, 2014.
12. Kelly, Kim (May 14, 2014). "Agalloch's Blackened Folk Metal Soothes the Soul on 'The Serpent & the Sphere'". Spin . SpinMedia. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
13. Ward, Kyle (May 11, 2014). "Agalloch. The Serpent and The Sphere". Sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
14. "AGALLOCH – Complete Work On New Album". Profound Lore Records . Retrieved March 19, 2014.