Releasing three more albums in the years since your humble reviewer last dipped his toe into their experimental waters, French collective Decline of the I (a side-project featuring members of Merrimack and, since 2019, Arkhon Infaustus) have not at all rested on their laurels. They continue to make dark and experimental black metal that takes in everything from male choral vocals to a post-black imbued sense of grand melody (on opener L'alliance des rats alone). The guitars form a mountain of sound not unlike late Deathspell Omega yet the band are far more openly avant-garde than their mysterious countrymen, throwing in plenty of experimental bells and whistles to fashion lengthy pieces of music that have a solid grasp on the listener's attention throughout.

They are equally obsessed with philosophy and the human condition, of course, this being part of a trilogy of albums based around the works of Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, although even if you don't fathom the meaning of every word here the music keeps you interested. Each piece here manages to be different enough from each other to keep things varied, in addition. Entwined Conundrum is a little slower, doomier initially before devolving into electronica-backed ambience, the male choral vocals joining for a spooky sensation as the track develops in more of an Ulver-esque direction. Funeral doom waves of riffs join, the vocals turning to sinister snarls, and the music speeds to become a black metal morass, chaotic and galloping. A break for more creepy ambience, then the drums rejoin, pounding and vicious; fine stuff!

The following Diapsalmata takes a more winding approach, beginning with trip-hop beats and spoken French vocals for the first few minutes of the piece, growing into a more Behemoth-ic black/death declaration as it progresses, and although over ten minutes in length it doesn't feel gimmicky or tiresome even for the many of us not blessed with an understanding of the French language, simply from the effectiveness of moments like the group chanting alone. Those wanting something a little more wild and intense will enjoy the following Éros N, howling vocals from the start as the band launch into speedy blasting, slowing into a groove later on with more spoken vocals and epic keyboards without lessening the impact. The closing Renouncer, meanwhile, all thirteen minutes plus of it, uses spookily effective ghostly child choirs in the background to give its atmospheric black voyage more potency. A little less spoken word would always be appreciated when it comes to this sort of aural trip but Decline of the I are well-practised at this style five albums in, and Wilheim is another one worth the recommendation for those who want a little philosophical air to their black metal.