When extending fandom of an ever-changing band across several decades it is absolutely healthy to analyze and rethink that fandom. In the case of Necrophobic each album leading up to 'Bloodhymns' was fleetingly interesting and every album beyond it has intensified my interest in the next. One of my first loves within old school death metal is 'The Nocturnal Silence' an album that I've committed to memory and worshiped for over twenty years. It is one of the best death metal records ever recorded due to it's propulsive Slayer influenced diatonics and intensely brutal-yet-thoughtful death metal guitar work. I have equal love for the band's second album 'Darkside' an album I credit with introducing me to melodic black metal a la Dissection. I wasn't actually compelled to purchase any Necrophobic material beyond the first two (and compilations) until 'Hrimthursum' in 2006, an album that re-captured all of the things I had loved about the band. Three albums later it seems Necrophobic have capitalized on what'd been missing since 2006: Excess.